Unexpected
by Inkwell of Stars
Summary: This is slash. If this offends you, please do not go on. Thanks. Arkael, a Carpathian male, discovers that he has a lifemate, Sept. But that's not all- his mate is male, leading to conflicted feelings. As for Sept...he is unsure of the bond he feels.
1. Chapter 1

He was _lonely_. It had been a long time since he'd spoken to another of his kind, a long time since his last laugh, his last smile. As he looked at the earth above him, he sorted through his thoughts. It wasn't really emotions he felt- he'd lost them with his colors centuries ago. It was the urge to kill while feeding, and the yearning, the desire to _feel _again, to wrap his arms around someone and be free of the burdens he felt.

_The yearning_, he thought with a shock, suddenly realizing that he was, in fact, feeling something other than the urge to kill. He felt a light presence near the edge of his mind, an elusive connection. With careful patience he reached for that thread connecting him with someone else.

_Lifemate. Mine,_ he thought, suddenly filled with elation as he determined where the other was.

He slept, then- a smile almost curving on his lips. _Wait for me, Lifemate._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept woke with his eyes gritty and his black hair a mess. He looked to his left, at his plastic alarm clock. It was four am. "Shoot," he muttered to himself, rubbing his green eyes. _Four hours of sleep! _he thought._ Am I getting insomnia?_

He remembered faintly what woke him- a voice calling to him. He couldn't remember what he dreamed of, frustrating him as he strained his memory. It seemed that once he grabbed hold of the memory, another piece of it was lost.

He leaned back on the bed, trying to fall asleep. Realizing that his efforts were futile, he got up and walked barefoot to the bathroom, yawning as he stumbled there.

It was nearly one hour later when he'd finished brushing his teeth, showering, dressing, and cooking his breakfast. He set a plate of omelet and rice on the wooden table by the kitchen window, and sat down on the chair next to it.

He looked out the window as he ate, seeing the snow outside. As he finished his last bite, his thoughts circled back to last week. When he'd told Adrian that he'd be moving out, and his roommate nodded. He just couldn't stand living with his childhood friend. _Sure, he's my friend and all…but to be truthful, Adrian's messy and brought his girlfriends over every week. _He shuddered as he remembered going to work one day without sleep, and yelling at Adrian. He looked with pride at his small apartment, inhabited solely by himself. Neat, orderly, and _quiet._

He slowly sipped at the cup of tea by his side. He still had an hour before leaving for work.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He dreamt of the warmth of his lifemate, the curve of a smile, the feeling of acceptance and compassion. He woke as the sun set, trembling- breathing unevenly in short gasps. He controlled his heartbeat and breathing as he dressed himself in dark clothes and boots, hiding a silver chain beneath his shirt.

The hunger ate at him- he'd traveled west three days without feeding. With a sigh, he used his mind to confirm that there was no one near to witness his bursting from the ground before doing so. Dusting dirt from his clothes, he started to walk near the town.

He saw a young couple near the road, and fogged their minds gently before biting into their necks and taking a few mouthfuls of blood. As he walked away, fading into the night, he withdrew from their minds, and changed into an owl, flying rapidly west. _West, where my lifemate is…_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Sept, hand me that, willya?" the woman next to him asked, gesturing at the box next to him. Sept reached over, removing a pile of white paper from the box and holding it out to the woman, who grabbed it and slammed it into the printer with one hand while furiously typing with the other.

He leaned back on his chair, stretching his neck and back while rolling his shoulders lazily. He rubbed his eyes as he squinted at the board next to the door.

"Got to see Zel, 'Ria," he told his co-worker and friend, Aria- who was still typing as if her very life depended on her accuracy and speed.

"Go on, Sept," she replied, her brown eyes never leaving her computer screen.

He smiled as he slipped into his black coat. He and Aria worked at a small company that sold art and jewelry, both taking care of the typing, scheduling, orders, and suchlike. Five days a week, seven hours a day minus holidays, they ran to and fro and rushed through everything from letters to website updates. But he liked the job, tiring as it was- the pay was good, and he'd always wanted a job involving art….even if he himself wasn't the artist.

He opened the door, revealing a brightly lit hallway. As he took the elevator down, he buttoned his coat and pulled a scarf from his pocket, wrapping it around his neck.

When he got outside and started walking, he shivered. _It's the end of winter already,_ he lamented. _And _still _it's so cold…_ He exhaled, his breath showing in the frigid air.

He walked quickly, motivated by the chill, down the street. After a few more streets and avenues, he opened the door to an old building, walking up the stairs to the fourth floor and knocking loudly on the door there.

It opened to reveal a tall, dark-skinned woman, her apron splattered with paint. "Come in, come in," she said, stepping back. He entered to see a room bare of everything but a computer, a cat, and art supplies. "Want anything to eat?" she asked. "I have cookies in the kitchen."

"No thanks, Zel," he said politely. "Anyway….I need some paintings from you….I think the ones on animals…?"

"Yeah," she said, immediately going to the right and lifting several canvases from the floor. "These, right?" He glanced at the two paintings she held out- abstract representations of lions and wolves. He nodded, sighing at the beauty of Zel's paintings.

She put them carefully into a waterproof bag, wrapping them in layers of protection. "Be careful with them…..I spent days on them," she warned, eyes taking a stern cast.

"I know," he replied, having heard the same words before.

"Going now?" she asked, looking at the clock.

He nodded. "Bye," he said to the figure bent over a canvas, painting carefully. He walked out the door quietly, not wanting to disturb her.


	2. Chapter 2

Unexpected

Unexpected…chapter 2. To philomina….I'm so happy!! (You're the first review from someone I don't know outside of )

I'm kind of making this as I go along….but here. Chap 2. Enjoy…? And review…..please…..

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He felt five presences in the city. Three Carpathians, his lifemate, and a….vampire. At the last thought, he felt the beast within him rise with the need to protect. To kill the vampire, the threat to his lifemate. Realizing this, he used the patience and will he'd strengthened during his long life to calm the beast.

His owl eyes swept across the wide space below him, seeing keenly in the dark night as he sat perched on a tall building. The moon was half-full, the city lights bright even with the lack of color in his sight as he observed the changes in the world he'd missed. _There_, he thought, feeling his lifemate to his right. He unfolded his wings, jumping off the building into the air.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept laughed. Aria sighed, tugging at her hair, exasperated.

"That- that…,"she started, before growling. "That _man_."

"So, basically, he….asked you to marry him and you said no," Sept said, grinning. "Right?"

"I don't know why you're laughing," she said, leaning back on the park bench, her eyes closed. Sept leaned back as well, smiling.

"_Well_, it's just that he reminds me of…" Sept paused, thinking. "Of a small puppy. Thinks itself the center of the world, adventurous, makes all sorts of trouble. And for him to suddenly realize that you wouldn't marry him…yeah." He laughed again. "I just imagined his face, you know."

Aria smiled, opening her eyes. Sept looked at her- her olive skin, her long eyelashes. He nodded to himself as he came to a conclusion. "You should get yourself a new boyfriend," he told her. "You're too good for the likes of _him_, even if he's charming and good looking."

"You volunteering for the position?" Aria asked, jokingly.

"Na…," he replied. "We're too used to being friends…dating you would be…how do I say this…."

"Wrong," she provided.

"Uncomfortable," he said at the same time.

"Zel's thinking of painting feathers," Aria said, and they began to speak about work and their friends, enjoying their friendship.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He landed on the ground near a tree, close to his lifemate. He could feel it.

He changed back to his human form, clothing himself in clothes he felt more suitable for the time period- a pair of jeans and a plain long-sleeved shirt. He took a deep breath to steady himself.

He started walking close to his lifemate, feeling that connection with his lifemate. _No longer in danger of turning,_ he thought, taking quiet steps towards the voices he heard. He cloaked himself in illusion as he stepped next to the tree next to the people he sensed. His eyes looked at them, and the breath was forced out of his lungs as he grasped at a tree branch. Suddenly, he saw the deep purple of the woman's dress.

_My…lifemate?_ he thought hopefully, suddenly filled with conflicting emotions he could feel only now. Uncertainty. Hope. Fear. Desperation.

It felt wrong, to step towards the woman, so he stayed in his position as he heard the man next to the woman laugh, a clear, beautiful sound. He looked at him, at the young face, the dark green eyes, the soft black hair…..and knew he was lost, his heart painful, the beast rising painfully. _Him,_ his heart seemed to tell him.

_He…_he_ is my lifemate?_ he thought suddenly, his eyes widening. He swallowed, confused. _Isn't he male, though…unless…_ He started to walk away. _This is wrong, this has never happened before,_ his mind told him even as his heart protested his clumsy steps, his Carpathian grace lost in a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions, each calling for his attention.

_No,_ he called into the night.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept turned uneasily in his sleep, dreaming of desperation and loneliness, shining red tears, and a cry of _no_ echoing in his mind.

In his sleep, he wept under the weight of those emotions, so vivid and _real_, for dreams. Worse than any other nightmare he had.

He woke near dawn, his blue pillow stained with tears and his eyes red, shuddering. _I never knew_ _developing insomnia would be so painful,_ he thought, joking to himself. He rubbed his chest, and looked at his alarm clock.

"Shoot." He pulled himself out of bed, looking into his mirror with shock at his red eyes. _How in the world…?_ he thought. _Must be my not sleeping enough._

He made himself a stong cup of tea, sitting in his kitchen wrapped in a blanket, comforting himself.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was again night, and Sept was asleep. His lifemate, however, sat on the bench he had sat on the night before.

_I will face the dawn after defeating the vampire,_ he decided, tormented by the memory of his lifemate's laughter, so pure and…. He sighed, recognizing the now-familiar feel of his heart aching for something it would- could- never have. _He…was so happy. I can't take that from him._

He visualized his lifemate, giving into temptation. _After all, I will never see him again. _

He saw a young, sharp chinned face- with high cheekbones and large, dark green eyes. He saw the dark hair, cut just below the curve of an ear, covering the neck halfway. He saw the smile, the slender-and-tall build.

_I need to meet the dawn. If I claim him, he will only be unhappy…and if he wanted me, my people will probably not accept us. It's the best plan._ He smiled sadly.

He felt more sure of himself, but paused as he saw the tree next to him.

When he went back to the underground room he'd decided to carry with him many pieces of wood. He began carving, holding the image of his lifemate and the sound of laughter close to his heart.

When he finished, it was close to dawn. He felt that it was not his best work- but as he looked at it, he knew it was the one he would love the most.

He slept, setting shields around himself and his lifemate.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Josef," Eleanor said, looking at his clothes with amusement and motherly affection. "You _do_ know that you forgot to add the fifth button on that shirt…"

He looked down, and sure enough, the fifth button on his shirt was missing, leaving an irregular gap between the fourth and sixth. He hastily corrected his mistake, blushing.

"There's a vampire," Vlad, Eleanor's lifemate, said, concerned.

"Should we call a hunter here?" Eleanor asked. Vlad shrugged.

"There's another one of us in the city…I think he means to kill the vampire."

"You should help him," Josef pointed out.

They paused in their walk as Eleanor looked at an art piece through the window of an art gallery. Vlad smiled before replying to Josef.

"I'm not good at killing vampires," he said with regret. "I am only a craftsman."

"But helping him….or at least meeting him, will be fine," Eleanor said, turning to her lifemate.

"We could see him now," Josef said. "Right?"

Vlad nodded as the three walked to a more secluded area before turning into owls- Josef taking three tries before succeeding in turning to a small owl, half the size of Vlad. They flew following Vlad's directions.

Soon they came to a spot on the earth near a park.

_Brother,_ Vlad called. _Will you come out? We wish to discuss the matter of the vampire…_

His call was cut off by the movement in the earth, as dirt moved and a figure climbed up. After his ascent, the figure immediately closed the earth, and turned to face Vlad and Eleanor.

"Greetings," Vlad said. _He looks horrible_, Eleanor said through their private link. _I wonder what has happened to him._ Vlad thought the same- the man in front of him was slumped, his eyes circled with red, his shirt tearstained. Yet, he knew that he was a powerful Carpathian- much, much older than he himself… "I am Vlad Belandrake, and this is my lifemate Eleanor, and our son Josef."

It did not go unnoticed that the Carpathian in front of them flinched at the word "lifemate". Eleanor and Vlad exchanged a look. _Lifemate troubles,_ Eleanor sent him. He agreed.

The man paused before speaking haltingly, softly. "Arkael Krynlin," he replied. He looked down, almost smiling at his ruined shirt as he rubbed his eyes that stung so painfully. He sighed.

"I'm sorry at my current state," he said, smiling politely as he stood up straighter and his gray eyes took on a determined cast. He was tall, but had defined muscles even though he was not as built as most hunters. "What do you wish of me?"


	3. Chapter 3

After this, I hope to put up a new chapter every week

After this, I hope to put up a new chapter every week….

Reviews make me happy…so if you want chapters sooner, review (and no flames, please) I apologize if Josef, Eleanor, and Vlad are slightly out of character, or if I make mistakes….

Disclaimer- For all the chapters before this one and the ones following it, the Carpathians belong to Christine Feehan, and I do not make any profit from this story, nor do I claim to own characters and ideas that come from her books.

Anyway, read and review…..

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What do you wish of me?" he asked them. He felt embarrassed at the evidence of his tears, at being caught at such a moment. The adult Carpathians he recognized slightly from centuries ago, as children. But the young one next to him…he did not recognize him.

"We felt the vampire," the woman- Eleanor- replied. "We wondered if we needed call a hunter, or if you intended to hunt this one."

"I plan to," Arkael said, his eyes strangely focused, in contrast to his appearance.

"This one is quite powerful," Vlad said carefully. "And we do not want to lose a hunter because of our failure to plan, or…recklessness."

_He's not angry, even though I just implied that he was inept,_ Vlad thought to his lifemate in surprise.

"I am not a hunter," Arkael said, smiling slightly, self-consciously. "But I believe myself old enough to defeat him." He paused before speaking again. "I will meet the dawn after defeating him."

"The dawn?" Eleanor asked, exchanging a look with Vlad. "Why? You have a lifemate…"

Her voice trailed off as Arkael stiffened. "I do not deserve hi- my lifemate.," he said, his voice forced. "My lifemate would be unhappy…with me."

"Then court her, send her flowers, be her friend," Josef said in the eerie silence following Arkael's words. Arkael felt a surge of anger, glaring at Josef for a split second. _He, a fledging knows nothing. Nothing, of my lifemate and I. How can he tell me what to do?_ His glare softened as he realized that Josef could know nothing, and that his own anger stemmed from his frustration and longing.

"I wish…to not talk of this," he said. "Please."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Vlad, Eleanor, and Josef walked through the city, tourists to those around them.

Vlad felt his lifemate's sadness, her unvoiced grief. "What's wrong?" he asked as she stopped walking.

"It's just…," she started, before shaking her head and sighing. "His lifemate, left to an incomplete life. Him, walking into the dawn without seeing that. And us, for we cannot stop him."

"_We_ can't….but his lifemate can," Josef said.

Vlad and Eleanor looked at him.

"You're right. She can, but where to find her?" Vlad asked. Eleanor smiled.

"I felt her, for a moment, when we spoke with Arkael. I can find her." Eleanor closed her eyes, reaching her mind out.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What did you add in this soup?" Sept asked, breathing in a smell that made his stomach growl and his mouth water.

"Ah, it's a family recipe," Aria replied, smiling at the look on his face. "What I should be asking you for is your pasta recipe. I never knew you cooked that well."

"If you live with Adrian, you have to know how to cook," Sept said, giving an exaggerated shudder. "His definition of dinner is take-out. You can only eat bad food a few times before you look for an escape."

"So you learned to cook?" Aria asked. "From who?"

"Your grandma," Sept said, laughing at the expression on Aria's face.

"She gave you her _recipes_?" she asked. "Her?"

"Funny how a bit of persuasion and charm works so well," Sept replied, grinning.

They were in Sept's apartment for their weekly shared dinner instead of at Aria's that day, since her sister had friends over. They ate in companionable silence, finishing and putting their bowls and plates in the sink.

"Cake?" Sept asked, taking a box from the fridge. "I bought some yesterday."

Aria nodded, and Sept cut two slices of strawberry cheesecake. "Milk?" he asked, glancing at her. She raised an eyebrow.

"You still drink that stuff?" she asked.

"Yeah," Sept said. "So you don't want any, right?" She nodded, and he poured himself a glass. He took a can of soda from the fridge and put it in front of Aria, next to her slice of cake.

"You definitely have a sweet tooth," Aria said. "What guy keeps cake in his fridge?"

"Me," he said, laughing at the look on Aria's face.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_She's here,_ Eleanor thought to her lifemate. They and Josef were in their owl forms, shielded from human sight.

They perched on a tree, peering into a window.

A man and woman sat across from each other, talking.

_Must be her_, Josef thought. Eleanor and Vlad agreed, sending a cautious probe into the two's minds. The woman immediately succumbed to their efforts as they learned she had a strong psychic ability- she dreamed of events in the past. But as they started a search of the man's mind, they met a strange resistance. He turned around, looking at the owls behind him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept's head hurt, as he fought something that felt like a headache. He turned around, not thinking, to see _owls_ near the window, looking at him with eyes that were too intelligent for any animal. He inhaled sharply.

Aria followed his movement, looking at the owls with amazement. "Cool. I didn't know we had owls in the city," she said.

"We're not supposed to have them," Sept said, still looking at the owls, feeling that something was out of place.

_He has powers as well,_ Vlad thought. _Is he any danger to the woman?_

_We should send both to sleep, and bring them to Arkael,_ Eleanor replied. _So he can face what has been pushing him to meet the dawn. It could be the man, you know._

As Sept turned around to talk with Aria again, Vlad sent a command for sleep to both him and Aria.

To Sept's eye, Aria collapsed suddenly, head falling to one side of the chair. He felt a weight in his mind, making his limbs heavy. His mouth clenched, as he bit his tongue. The pain helped him concentrate, fighting off the command.

He went to Aria, his heart beating in fear, concerned for his friend.

He felt that they were no longer alone, and turned around, seeing strangers in his kitchen. His heart beat even faster, his mouth dry.

"Who are you, and why are you in my kitchen?" Sept asked, his mind tangled. The door was locked, the window closed. No one should be there.

Vlad, Eleanor, and Josef were now in their normal forms, staring at Sept with surprise.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Did you like this chapter? Or was it….bad?


	4. Chapter 4

I didn't keep to my intention of one/two chapters per week

I didn't keep to my intention of one/two chapters per week….sigh…I definitely have trouble sorting through my priorities….

(The disclaimer is in the previous chapter…so don't bother this lazy person)

To those reading this, I hope you like it…and review.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael's eyes widened, as he swallowed with some difficulty and clenched his carving tools. He felt fear from his lifemate, an overwhelming feeling.

_It cannot be the vampire,_ he thought desperately, rising from the ground and changing into an owl. _It cannot, it cannot, it cannot! _In his mind, he clearly pictured his lifemate killed by a vampire- he was not female, and thus would have no value in the fallen one's eyes.

His heart beat with a fear he had never felt- fear that his lifemate, the other half of his soul, was in danger. He flew without really seeing where he was going, only concerned with getting to his lifemate as quickly as possible.

He saw a closed window, and felt his lifemate behind it. With his mind, he opened the window- and flew in, shifting to his normal form.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept looked at the people in front of him. _They look like stunned rabbits_, he thought, noticing their surprised expressions.

"Please get out of my apartment," he said. They looked dangerous- and he couldn't shake the feeling that they were _different_. That feeling made his breathing and heartbeat irregular, as adrenaline raced through his bloodstream.

Suddenly, he heard a sound, and turned to the window. It opened _by itself_ as an owl swooped down. _Then_ the owl….changed, the owl's body morphing into a human shape. A tall man dressed in blue, his dark hair tied, stood in front of Sept. He faced the men and woman.

Sept's eyes blinked a few times before he shook his head and looked again. The man was there, there was no owl. _This has to be a dream,_ he told himself. _Owls do not change into humans. People do not suddenly appear in locked apartments._ The effort to calm himself only made him more panicked as he clutched at the chair Aria sat on, unknowingly creating a defensive posture.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael inwardly sighed with relief as he recognized Vlad, Eleanor, and Josef. He felt his lifemate behind him, the feelings coming from him worrying Arkael. His eyes met Vlad's.

_What are you doing in my lifemate's apartment?_ he thought at him, demanding an answer.

"Please leave my apartment," Sept said again, his voice shaking but strong. "If you do not I will contact the police." His right hand held his cutting board, his left on Aria's chair.

Arkael turned, looking at his lifemate.

It was a mistake. The instant he saw his lifemate, his eyes determined even though filled with fear, he felt that _connection_. His shoulders shook as he resisted that urge to embrace him, to take that fear away. _That green of his eyes, that hair, that face, those lips…_ As he realized the direction of his thoughts, he breathed deeply. _Calm, calm,_ he thought to himself, closing his eyes for a moment.

Still, he felt lost as he looked into that green of his lifemate's eyes, so deep and dark….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Vlad and Eleanor looked at each other. _What is wrong with Arkael?_ Eleanor thought to Vlad. _He's been looking at that man for a while now…_

Vlad agreed with his lifemate, looking at Arkael's back. _Something's not right…_

Seconds passed, and their worry only strengthened.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

That man turned to face Sept. As he looked at him, he _felt_ something.He was instantly reminded of the dreams he'd had the nights before- the ones full of anguish and tears of red. And those eyes he saw on the stranger were unnatural, such a shade of gray that it immediately reminded him of storm clouds, looking into his eyes so intensely. _He has a nice face,_ Sept thought, staring at Arkael's elegant Carpathian features. _He looks…._ Sept breathed deeply. _What am I doing, thinking of a _stranger_ like that?_ He shook off the unwelcome thoughts, his mind fogged with confusion and fear.

The three strangers disappeared, and with one more lingering look at his lifemate, the man in front of him followed suit.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Why did you leave? We left so you could have some time with her! Not so that you would follow us! Your _lifemate_ was there! You could've.."

"I can't!" Arkael said, his voice filled with torment. "I can't!"

"Why?" Eleanor asked, not giving up her argument.

Arkael paced in his underground room, his uninvited guests standing across from him. His jaw hardened.

Finally, he stood in front of Eleanor, his eyes wild. "It's because that woman is not my lifemate!" he shouted.

"If it isn't _her_ than who is it?" Vlad asked, anger showing in his face. Even if he didn't mean it, Arkael had shouted at his lifemate, and the beast in him rose at that fact.

"It- it's _him._ Damn it all, it's _him_! Can't you see it now? I can't claim him!" he shouted. "I.." His voice suddenly lost volume as he spoke in little more than a whisper. "I would make him unhappy. That woman is probably his lover…and no one would accept us anyway…" His eyes were downcast.

"Who are you talking about?" Vlad asked in frustration, not taking in Arkael's words. Eleanor looked similarly confused.

"Oh no," Josef said, his eyes widening. The others looked at him.

"What?" Vlad asked.

Josef looked at Arkael. "It's that man, isn't it. That man…is your lifemate. Right?"

Vlad and Eleanor's eyes widened as well as they looked at Arkael, who nodded.

"He's my lifemate," he said emotionlessly. "Now that you understand…please leave me alone." Vlad and Eleanor looked at him, and then disappeared with Josef, leaving Arkael to his loneliness, and that yearning for a beautiful green-eyed man….his lifemate, who he could not have….

He picked up his carving tools, his heart heavy. He would hunt the vampire soon…but he wanted to leave his lifemate something. Even if he could not be with that man, at least his art would. He looked at the half-finished carving with iirrational jealousy for a moment before sighing, running a hand through his hair.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept looked at the empty space where the strangers were not five minutes ago, and then at Aria, sleeping peacefully.

_How in the world do I explain everything to her?_ He worried. _I can't exactly say that she fell asleep and that strangers appeared out of nowhere…especially the part of that owl turning into a man! She'll think I'm crazy or something…_

He sighed, shaking Aria. "Wake up, 'Ria," he said.

"Hmm?" she said, opening her eyes.

"The cake must've made you sleepy," Sept joked, his smile faked. Luckily for him, Aria didn't notice, being half awake.

"I didn't notice…"

"It's late…I'll walk you home," he offered.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Reviews, anyone?


	5. Chapter 5

The disclaimer is in chapter 3

The disclaimer is in chapter 3….I think.

To black death24, I like the books Dark Melody, Symphony, and Desire.

All the reviews make me happy jumps with joy

So…read and review this chapter- I hope you like it...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_It was a dream…my mind must have played tricks on me, _Sept thought as he walked. Nothing changed- there was no sign of the strangers, and it was not realistic of him to believe that people could disappear into thin air and turn into owls.

"Are you okay?" Aria asked him suddenly, her brown eyes revealing deep concern. "You've been too silent, and you have that look on your face, you know… that one you get when you're under too much stress…"

"It's nothing," he said quickly.

"Hmm…," she said, suspiciously. "_Nothing_, heh?"

He shrugged, and Aria sighed. "You'll tell me sooner or later," she muttered.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael finished carving, and smiled at the final result. He caressed it, smiling, and carried it in his claws when he turned into an owl. _Tonight,_ he thought to himself. _I will destroy the vampire tonight. _His heart wavered for one moment as his mind flickered back to his lifemate, steadying as he called up the image of him happy, surrounded by children. _Tonight. Any later…and I will not find the strength to leave him._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Vlad and Eleanor sat down in the living room, sipping from wine glasses of blood. _The silence is unnatural_, Josef thought, sitting on his chair next to the window.

He began to draw, sketching the moonlit sky, even as he worried. _Are lifemates of the same gender even possible? _he thought to himself as his pencil scratched quickly on the paper in front of him. He guessed that his parents weren't taking the news too well- the silence showed that.

_What do we do?_ Eleanor thought to her lifemate. _Arkael seems convinced that the man was his lifemate…but this has never happened before!_

Vlad felt the worry in her, and sent comfort down their link. _I think we should talk to Byron, _he thought to her. _He is near the Carpathian mountains, and can tell the prince of Arkael. _He felt a mental nod from her.

She felt for the link between her and her brother. _Brother, we have a…problem,_ she sent down the link.

Byron paused before answering her. _What is it? _he asked.

_There is one of our kind, a craftsman named Arkael Krynlin, here. He found his lifemate but…_ She paused, suddenly thinking of Byron's reaction to her next words. Vlad smiled- his lifemate was so considerate of others.

_But?_ He asked.

_But, well, there is a vampire near by,_ she hedged before launching into the main problem. _And…his lifemate…is…_

_Male,_ Vlad finished for her, earning a glare from his lifemate.

_WHAT? _Byron shouted on their link, loud enough for Vlad and Eleanor to develop slight headaches. _Did I just hear that his lifemate is _MALE_?_

_You did,_ Vlad said. _And there lies our problem- we do not know if the man is truly Arkael's lifemate, and cannot probe him because of his psychic strength._

_Psychic strength? _They felt Byron's curiosity.

_We attempted to probe him, but he had shields protecting him._

_Arkael's shields? _he asked. _If he believed the man to be his lifemate, then he could've shielded him…_

_No, they didn't feel…Carpathian, though not mage or vampire either, _Eleanor answered.

_So what are Arkael's thoughts on this?_ Byron thought to them.

_Actually…he wishes to meet the dawn, _Eleanor thought back, sending her worry down the link. _We want you to tell the prince of this…and help Arkael._

They felt a mental sigh from Byron. _So we do not have much time to persuade him out of his decision, _he thought to them.

_Help him, _Antoinetta thought to the three of them- her lifemate, Eleanor, and Vlad. _We cannot lose another one of us, not when our numbers are dwindling._

_I will speak to Mikhail…and if he does not support this, I will go to Arkael,_ Byron thought. _Try to stall him._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The vampire turned his head, and smiled maliciously. His red eyes held an insane fire as he stared at the space behind him, his bony hands gripping a pole nearby, leaving imprints of his fingers on the solid steel.

He vanished into the air.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept's heartbeat increased, and he felt sweat on his hands. _Danger!_ his instincts told him. He took a deep breath.

"You look wobbly," Aria said. He gave her a reassuring smile.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," he said. "Must be the effect of cake this late at night."

They continued walking through the streets, crossing through the empty park for a shortcut. Suddenly, Sept fell down on one knee, a hand on his head.

A jolt of pain, and a feeling of _something_ fighting his mind made him fall, made him tense. As Aria bent to help him up, she fell, her eyes closed.

He lifted his head to face a man, dressed in tattered black clothes, though his face was beautiful….almost like that stranger with gray eyes…. He concentrated on the present, his eyes focusing on the man before him.

He gasped. The man's face morphed as he focused, from beautiful to gruesome, the elegant features twisting, the skin darkening to gray. The face ruined by that sadistic smile, those red eyes that held a thirst for blood.

Sept found the strength to stand up, his body between the gray-skinned man and Aria.

"Stand aside and I will not kill you," he heard the gray man say, his voice holding a melodious quality. He found himself almost stepping to his left, but as he looked at the man's face, he stood his ground. _I don't know if he's insane or has a skin disease, but there is no way that I'd leave Aria,_ he told the weak part of himself. _You're not going to abandon your friend…_

"Did you not hear me?" the man said, his voice no longer pleasant. He started to walk to Sept.

Sept glanced at the man's rising hands, the sharp nails that were lengthening. He saw the man's mouth open to reveal sharp teeth. His heart pounded almost painfully, as he breathed irregularly. He kept his defensive posture, raising his own arms.

_Think, think,_ he told himself quickly. _A madman is going to attack, and I have to defend Aria… _He couldn't run, he knew. He couldn't carry Aria if he did. He couldn't call the police either- the man would kill him long before he could. He looked at Aria, and then faced the vampire.

"What is your decision, human?" the man asked.

Sept felt desperation seize him, a determined kind of fear settling into him even as a part of his mind viewed the moment with cold calculation. _If I will die here, I should at least help Aria run…I don't want my last second on Earth to be spent without something good coming out of it…_

He kicked behind him, kicking Aria, his mind willing her to wake up. "Are you crazy? Why should I step aside?" he replied, his voice shaking.

He glanced at Aria again, who did not wake. _Wake up!_ he shouted at her- though his voice did not work. Her eyes opened.

"Run!" he shouted at her. "Run, Aria, call the police!" As the words registered in her mind, she looked at him- at the determination and fear she saw. She nodded, and ran.

Sept saw the man run after Aria with unnatural speed, and felt a burst of anger. _Why should our lives end here?_ he thought. His skin suddenly felt too hot. He directed his anger at the man as he ran after him, his mind instinctively reaching for the mans'mind.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael felt fear from his lifemate, and a feeling of darkness. _The vampire, _he thought as he rushed into the skies, his carving left in his lifemates' room.

It was not Eleanor and Vlad- that feeling of darkness was unmistakable. The beast rose, and this time he restricted it less, the chains a little less confining on that ruthless part of himself.

He felt his lifemate in the park, and flew there, changing into his normal shape as he descended onto the ground, running. He stopped as he saw the vampire run after his lifemates' friend…or lover…..and felt ashamed as he wished for her death. He started to run for the vampire, but halted as he felt a burst of anger from his lifemate. He shifted his body to face his lifemate, his eyes glaring at the vampire with fury, his green eyes lit with an inner fire. He felt awe, at the power he felt in the air- power whose source was that green eyed man.

He felt the clouds in the sky thicken, lightning and thunder coming with the unexpected rain, droplets staining his clothes and running down his face and hair. He looked with shock as a bolt of lightning hit the vampire, searing everything _including _the heart. Where the vampire stood there was a streak of black and charred ashes. Then he looked at his lifemate, who started to fall to the ground.

With his Carpathian speed, Arkael caught his lifemate, and then looked at his lifemate's lover, her eyes wide.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sorry for the delay…but did you like this chapter? Somehow I get the feeling that the previous chapters were better…oh, well….

Reviews, anyone? (more reviews will make me happier, leading to chapters arriving sooner) - that will not be considered bribery, k?


	6. Chapter 6

Same old, same old

Same old, same old….the disclaimer is in a previous chapter. I hope you like this chapter….review if you can! Sorry if I make mistakes or the characters are out of character….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael looked at his lifemate's lover, whose gaze wavered between the charred remains of the vampire, and Arkael, who held Sept in his arms. Her eyes finally focused on Arkael.

"Can you put down my friend?" she asked politely, taking the more sensible route- instead of gaping and demanding answers the man in front of her might not know anyway.

He put down his lifemate with some difficulty- his heart urged him to snatch the man and run away from everyone- the Carpathians who would judge them and the humans that would remind him of what he would have taken from his lifemate. Then he looked at his lifemate's lover…or was it friend? His heart buried that small hope as he reached gently into the woman's mind and erased her memory of that night, replacing it with one where she and his lifemate walked to her home, exchanging happy goodbyes. His alterations met no resistance, and as he put a command for her to sleep, he felt guilt. _She is my lifemate's…friend…he would be unhappy if he found evidence of this,_ he thought. He abandoned his train of thought as he carried both his lifemate and his friend, turning human eyes away from them as he walked.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Prince," Byron greeted Mikhail, Antoinetta next to him. "I have an urgent matter to discuss."

"What is it?" Mikhail asked, his eyes intent on Byron. Raven, next to him, looked at Byron as well.

"My sister and her lifemate have told me that one of our people…most likely older than most of us, has arrived in the city they are in. He wishes to meet the dawn."

"I see no problem….he is honorable, to do so instead of turning. We will regret the loss of another one of us greatly…and with his age, his knowledge would also be lost…"

"He has found his lifemate," Antonietta cut in.

"Then why is he meeting the dawn?" Raven asked. "You'd think that, like the rest of the Carpathian males, he would've stolen his lifemate away and claimed her forcefully...the poor woman…" Mikhail glared at her, and she smiled at him.

"That's just it. His lifemate isn't a woman," Byron said cautiously.

"Oh…don't tell me that his lifemate is a child," Mikhail said. "No wonder he wants to meet the dawn."

"No, not a child," Byron said.

"Then what is his lifemate? No…not happily married?" Raven said her last few words with sympathy.

"Not that," Antoinetta said. "It's…well…his lifemate is male."

"_His_ lifemate is _male_," Mikhail repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Male."

Then he blinked and took a deep breath. "Impossible," he said.

"Impossible?" Byron asked. He looked at his lifemate, who half-smiled.

"Most believe it impossible that vampires exist, and yet they do," she said to Mikhail.

"And what about human lifemates? You didn't know about them until you met me," Raven played along, exchanging a look with Antoinetta, feeling Antoinetta's desire to help the Carpathian her sister-in-law met.

Mikhail sighed. "We need Gregori."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael put down his lifemate's friend- Aria, as he'd learned by mistake from her mind- onto her bed in the apartment she lived in, in the building next to her grandparents. He did it with care, covering her with blankets. He felt something gnawing at his heart, and recognized it as envy. Jealousy, ugly jealousy that the woman, Aria, would be able to share his lifemate's life. Be able to laugh with him, embrace him, kiss him, have children with him….. The beast rose in him, growling with dark emotions.

He stepped out the window with his lifemate in his arms, onto the ledge. He closed the window of Aria's room as he held his lifemate gently, jumping onto the ground from Aria's apartment on the third floor. He was silent as he walked back to his underground room.

When he reached that room, he placed his lifemate onto the bed, studying him.

His breathing was normal though Arkael could feel stress, tension, in his lifemate. Before he could stop himself, he reached out a hand to touch a lock of hair that fell on the left side of his lifemate's face. Carefully, he touched his lifemate's face. Carefully, almost afraid that his lifemate would wake, or break under his touch like an illusion.

He was no illusion- he was the real thing. He was his lifemate, even though his body was different than that of other lifemates. Suddenly he did not care, if his lifemate woke and found him. He did not care, that others would look at them strangely. The only thing that held him back was what would make his lifemate most happy.

He put his arms around his lifemate, sending a compulsion into his lifemate's mind, to send him into deeper sleep. Then he closed his eyes, smiling.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept dreamt of peace, happiness. Acceptance, warmth. Dreams and reality merged for one frightening moment as he woke. Then he opened his eyes, seeing the brown wall across from him. _Wait…brown? My room is blue and white… And this feeling… _He looked to find arms around him, and tensed, turning around.

He saw the man that had changed from an owl- that man that he thought was part of a delusion, a cake-induced dream or something like that. Not real, not so solid, so…warm. He was very aware of the part of himself in the back of his mind that was comfortable where he was, in a stranger's arms. _What is wrong with me? He's a stranger! If you wake up next to a stranger, you're supposed to kick him off._ He felt unable to raise his leg in that defensive move, trapped in hesitation.

The stranger's eyes opened, a stormy gray that reminded him of rain, wind, clouds…..and peace. In the depths of those eyes, he felt acceptance. _You're crazy,_ he told himself as his heartbeat accelerated. _You should be running, running like demons are chasing at your heels! Not just lying there, you idiot!_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael woke when he felt tension next to him, from his lifemate. He woke to find green eyes looking at him, so unexpected that he found that it was difficult to breathe. He found himself trapped as those green eyes searched his, seeing parts of his soul. He felt vulnerable under those eyes. _What will I do now?_ he thought. _He will want answers… _He paused in his thinking process, wondering why his compulsion did not work. _Must be his psychic strength…_

"Why am I here?" his lifemate asked, making no move to escape from Arkael's arms. That fact confused him. _Why doesn't he push me away? He has enough power to burn a vampire whole…he should be able to push me away… _He then realized that his lifemate expected an answer.

"You remember what happened yesterday?" he asked. His lifemate nodded, his expression cautious, almost suspicious. "That…being…was a vampire."

"_Vampire_?" he asked back, one eyebrow shooting up. "_Vampire,_ as in fangs and garlic and crosses? Are you crazy?" Then he looked at Arkael's face, so serious, and sighed.

"You burned him to ashes," Arkaeal said then. "And after such a use of power, you fainted."

"I….I _what?_" His lifemate looked at him with wide eyes, unbelieving.

"You were angry," Arkael said by way of explanation, though it did not help his lifemate believe his words. "Try to remember the rain that came after your anger…and the bolt of lightning that destroyed the vampire."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The gray-eyed man talked to Sept as if what he was saying was…well, true. His arms were still around Sept, and Sept found it to be comforting….

He shook his head slightly, pushing at the man's chest. The arms tightened for a moment before slackening, releasing their hold on him. He got up, sitting on the bed- making no move to escape. _I felt angry and then…my skin was hot. I glared at the man…and lightning? _He remembered a golden flash before he fell, but thought that it was just a dream, a delusion. _Did I really…?_

"You remember, then," the man in front of him said, getting up as well. "I suppose I must introduce myself…?" He paused, looking at Sept, who shrugged. "My name is Arkael Krynlin…I am a craftsman." He offered his hand slowly, his eyes meeting Septs'.

"September Blue, Sept for short," Sept said, taking Arkael's hand and shaking it firmly. "So….about vampires….how do you know that gray-skinned man was one? How do I know _you're _not one?" He said the last words as a joke, but Arkael looked thoughtful for a moment.

"If you want, I can erase your memories of the vampire. You can return to your normal human life, with your lover and lead a happy life," Arkael said.

"You can do that?" Sept asked, his eyes narrowing. "And wait…._lover?_"

"That woman you saved, Aria- is she not your lover?" Arkael asked. To him, his voice sounded strained, though Sept did not notice.

"She's a childhood friend," Sept answered. Arkael blinked several times before standing up and running his hands through his hair, pacing.

Sept watched, curious, as Arkael's face began to show subtle signs of conflicting emotion. _I don't know this man, _he warned himself. _You can't go offer a shoulder to someone who you don't know…_ Still, he found himself walking to Arkael.

Arkael looked up, surprised, at his lifemate. "Should I go?" Sept asked uncomfortably. "I don't need to have memories erased- that's not possible, right? Me getting angry and burning someone, or vampires. I'll just go, keep quiet."

"I erased some of Aria's memories," Arkael said.

"You…what?" Sept asked. "You.."

"I just erased the vampire memory, don't worry. I did not do anything harmful to her," Arkael said. _He cares for her a lot…if they are not lovers…_

"She's like an older sister to me….if you did anything…." Sept added a warning note to his voice, a slight edge of power. His eyes looked deep into Arkael's, looking with ice. And as suddenly as it was there, that power disappeared.

"I only did what was necessary….I did not pry into her secrets or anything like that," Arkael said quickly, his mind repeating the word _sister_ over and over.

Sept relaxed, and then looked around the room. Then he looked at Arkael. "No exits?" he asked, almost panicking.

Arkael did a mental sweep of the surrounding area before opening a path up for his lifemate. Sept just looked at him, amazed, as the brown area above him moved and a hole was opened up. He suddenly felt arms around him once again- felt that his feet lost contact with the floor. He closed his eyes for only a moment before his feet touched solid ground, and almost fell, steadied by the arms around him.

_So warm, _Arkael thought to himself, keeping his arms around his lifemate- September- for a moment longer before regretfully loosening his hold. "Are you certain that you wish to remember the vampire and your powers?" he asked.

"Not really," Sept answered truthfully. "I'm…curious. It's probably not a good idea to leave me with strange memories." He paused, stretching his arms. "You might find me losing sleep because of all of this… I still can't believe all this is….real." He pinched himself, and shrugged. "Guess it is."

"I'll erase them now, if you wish," Arkael offered, his heart against the idea. Sept nodded. "Relax…."

Sept tried to relax, but when he felt a presence in his mind, he instinctively threw up a shield, some resisting power. Arkael just waited, his eyes on Sept's, not pushing his power and using force. He just waited, his mental self enveloping Sept's. Asking for trust.

Sept finally relaxed, and felt Arkael enter his mind gently, with the care of a master painter. _I will not do more than I must,_ he said into Sept's mind. Sept jumped at the mental voice, with a comforting deep tone, laced with emotions he could not identify. Arkael reached for the memory of the vampire slowly, opening himself to his lifemate to keep the trust between them alive.

Sept lost himself, as he _felt_ Arkael's mind in his. Flashes of memory ran through his head. _The feel of wood and the carving knife…the notes of a harp…the laughter of an older woman…the loneliness…the taste of blood…the urges…the darkness…the beast…the yearning…the tears of red…_

_He's the one I dream of,_ Sept said to himself, not knowing that Arkael heard his thought and stopped, holding his breath. Sept could not explain the sudden conviction that seized him, the unreasonable belief that the man in front of him could be in his dreams. _But the red tears, the loneliness… _Sept tensed as he remembered the taste of blood from Arkael's memories, and threw up a shield around his mind, pushing Arkael out.

"Are you a vampire?" Sept asked, preparing to flee.

Arkael stood there, unmoving. "I am not, though I share…some resemblances to a vampire, Sept." He opened his mind fully to his lifemate, not thinking before he did so. He felt so vulnerable, so defenseless, as he opened the door to every secret and hidden memory in him.

Sept entered Arkael's mind instinctively, though not without caution. Arkael's eyes were closed as Sept saw quick glimpses into Arkael's life. Enough for him to rip himself away from the feeling of acceptance he found in Arkael's mind.

He blushed, hating himself for that blush. "I'm sorry," he said. "For intruding on your privacy." Arkael shook his head, his heart aching as he saw the faint trace of color covering his lifemate's cheeks, and the frustration and embarrassment he saw in those green eyes. Sept saw Arkael's family, and glimpses of the Carpathians- turning into vampires, hunting vampires, living and laughing. He saw Arkael, crying. Crying as a child and weeping as an adult. Memories of many centuries- Arkael saving a young boy, hunting murderers and vampires, talking to himself. The words he heard were "I will meet the dawn"- and Sept thought about that, his curiosity not satisfied.

Then, suddenly, he realized what it meant.

"Wait….if you're a vampire, or at least kind of like one, won't going into the sun kill you?" Sept asked, an indescribable worry gripping at his heart, even if the man before him could still be considered a stranger. His worries about Aria and his ability to call lightning were forgotten as he looked at Arkael.

"If I walk into it, I will burn…but a little sun will not kill me," Arkael said carefully, seeing that the conversation was going where he did not want it to go.

"But if you stay there, you will die," Sept said, willing Arkael to confirm or deny his statement. When Arkael did not answer, he stepped closer to him, and Arkael averted his eyes from that piercing gaze. "You will die, right?" There was still no answer. "You're going to commit suicide."

"It does not concern you," Arkael said, stepping back even as Sept advanced towards him. Before he knew it, his back was against the tree, and he raised his head to look at his lifemate, his face lit by moonlight. His lifemate was a few inches shorter than he, but he still felt pushed back by those eyes, that power his lifemate had.

"I don't want to know that a person I just met would kill himself, not when I could do something about it," Sept said. "So, give me a reason. You don't look like a person that would have suicidal thoughts…."

_Ah, if only he knew…,_ Arkael thought.

"Know what?" Sept asked, thinking that Arkael had said something.

Arkael looked at Sept, not showing the surprise he felt. "You heard that?" he asked almost casually.

"Heard what?" Sept asked back, confused.

"When I….said… 'if only he knew'," Arkael said.

"Yeah," Sept answered, still confused.

"I didn't say it….I thought it," Arkael said.

"Wha- _What?_" his lifemate said, looking so much more confused and frustrated that Arkael could not help but laugh. His first real laugh in centuries.

Sept couldn't stop staring at Arkael, whose eyes brightened and body shook as he laughed, a deep and joyful sound that- unexpectedly- warmed Sept, even as he felt a blush again. _He's laughing at _me_,_ Sept thought to himself. "I wouldn't think that suicidal people would…laugh," Sept said, feeling the need to preserve his pride. Arkael shrugged, smiling, his eyes still holding that brightness. _Will this work out? _he wondered. _Could this bond between Sept and I yield happiness? _"Well, what don't I know?"

Arkael shook his head. "It's best that I don't tell you," he said, his smile fading.

"Is this thing that you won't tell me of….is it why you'll go into the sun?" Sept asked. Arkael could not respond, and Sept felt that he'd guessed right. He could not explain why he said his next few words- they just flew out from his mouth. "Does it have to do with me?" Again there was that silence, that expression on Arkael's face.

"Partially," Arkael hedged, avoiding the full answer.

"Does it?" Sept asked, his voice soft, uncertain. As Arkael looked at him, he felt the urge to press his lips against his lifemate's lips, to hold that warmth. The beast opened one eye, rattling the chains Arkael had set on it.

Arkael fought temptation- and was not the only one. As Sept looked at him, he felt that same urge to find out how soft those lips were…. _He's male, right?_ Sept asked himself, looking at Arkael. _Why am I feeling this? I thought I was straight…_

"So, are you still going to suicide?" Sept asked, his voice strained. Arkael caught that strain, and realized that he was not the only one feeling the attraction. _Do I have a chance after all…?_ he thought, this time shielding his thoughts from Sept.

"Perhaps," Arkael said.

"Will you promise me that you won't?" Sept asked. Arkael shook his head, not saying yes. His lifemate did not deserve lies, even if all Arkael could give were parts of the truth.

"I think it is time to say our goodbyes," Arkael said, needing to get away from Sept. Sept nodded.

"Yes…but, about my powers…will I see you again? I don't want to suddenly burn down my house or kill someone," Sept said, his heart telling him to push Arkael out of his decision…..and his mind telling him to be careful of his anger…and powers.

"If you need me….perhaps," Arkael said, feeling that he had to finish the responsibility of keeping his lifemate safe, or at least giving him enough knowledge to protect himself and others.

"Then…that's a promise!" Sept said as he started to walk away, not giving Arkael time to take back his last words. "See you…tomorrow. In front of the statue of an angel in the middle of the park, at ten o' clock."

Arkael just watched his lifemate leave. _After this, I will meet the dawn…after this…_ And yet, his heart was already overriding his mind, pushing him to a direction his mind warned against.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So…was that good? It's my longest chapter so far….heh…

Review please- press that interesting button below….)

Reviews make me happy and give me more energy and determination to finish chapters….so if you liked this, or have ideas….press that button….


	7. Chapter 7

Still eleven reviews

Thanks for the review….now I have twelve! (the happiness achieved through a review gives me a boost of energy and determination…) Oh….and you'll have to wait for the next chapter to see who makes the first move… Sorry about that…I wrote this before the review…just didn't put it up.

The disclaimer is in the 3rd or 4th chapter, I think.

Oh, and to The Elven Archer of Rivvendell….I really liked your Dark Jewels story…) And thanks to my eleven reviewers and those that put me on their favs and alerts!

So, without further ado…..

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Gregori,_ he heard Mikhail call to him. _Will you come? We have…a problem. _

Gregori looked at Savannah, who started tugging his sleeve, dragging him to the house her father lived in. They walked quickly, using their Carpathian speed, for the sun's rising drew near.

_What is it?_ Gregori asked Mikhail.

_We'll tell you when you get here,_ Mikhail replied.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael went back to his underground room, and made a sound of frustration as he breathed in his lifemate's scent, faint traces of it in the air….and on the pillow.

It was not right, but Arkael walked to the bed where Sept had slept on, and picked up the white pillow he found there, clutching at it- putting his nose into it. He sighed, comforted by that unique smell of his lifemate, even though he knew that staying with him too long would weaken his resolve to walk into the dawn.

His cheek moved against the fabric of the pillow, trying to gain strength from the soft material. He stayed there, the pillow in his arms, for a while before he sent his body into Carpathian sleep, leaving his worries behind him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

She heard someone knock on her door loudly. She jumped out of bed to look at the round clock that hung in her room, displaying the time- 9:20- and sighed in relief as she realized that it was Sunday, and she didn't need to go to work.

"Who is it?" she called. Then she saw the mirror, and frowned. She _never_ wore her shoes to bed….and it was strange, how she didn't put on her pajamas before sleeping.

"It's Sept," she heard a familiar voice reply, and walked out of her room to the apartment door, unlocking it.

"Good Morning," Sept said to her cheerfully, though she felt that he…was a little….different. Something about that smile was changed, that set of the shoulders, that glint of _something_ in his eyes…

"Just wait, let me brush my teeth and change," she said as he stepped into the apartment, locking the door behind him. "It's strange….I went to bed with my shoes on and everything. Guess I was too tired." Sept's smile faded a little, but she saw the difference immediately, and her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Wait in the living room for me," she told him. "I'll be ready in a bit…but you might want to grab a book or magazine…"

Sept nodded, and followed her instructions as she went back into her room and entered the adjoining bathroom. She took a brief shower and changed into a new set of clothes- going through her whole morning routine- before she stepped out of the bathroom and went to where Sept was.

He was intently reading a book that he'd pulled from her shelf, though she could not see the title from her position. His hands held the book tightly, his back leaning on the blue sofa. "What are you reading?" she asked.

He held up the book, and as she read the title she gave him an incredulous look. "_Dracula?_" she asked. "I thought you hated the classics…"

He shrugged. "I just thought it looked interesting," he said, shrugging, and she laughed.

"You'll get bored with that soon," she said.

"You know I read, right? It's not like it's too difficult for me to read this," he replied, pretending to be insulted in a very comical way.

"No, no," she said, shaking her head and sitting next to her friend. "You just don't like old books in general….though I think you _did_ survive those books we had in high school and college…."

"It's not all the old books," he said. "I liked some of them."

"Oh well…putting books aside for a moment…did you eat breakfast yet?" she asked. He shook his head.

"Omelet, this time?" he asked. "And cake later?" He gave her a puppy-eyed look, and she held her arms up in surrender.

"Let's go, let's go," she said with a sigh.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept ate the slice of cake slowly, but could not resist thinking about the man he met that morning….Arkael. _He's a vampire…kind of,_ he thought. _But when I saw his memories…he didn't look like a bad person. He wasn't insane or anything, not like that vampire…I burned. _And that led to another one of his problems- that he could call lightning from the sky and burn people when he was angry. _That_ was scary- what if he got angry at some random guy on the street and he burned him? Or what if he got angry at _Aria_? His worries stopped as he remembered Arkael's promise to help him.

And that just left him back to where his thoughts started from- the memory of gray eyes and red tears. He made a sound of frustration.

"Sept?" he heard Aria say, and his attention snapped back to reality and the homey café they were eating in. "You looked like you were thinking….deeply," she said, and Sept winced. _She always knew when something was wrong with me,_ he thought.

"Yeah," he replied, not knowing what to say.

"Will you tell me what's been bothering you?" she asked, her posture showing attention. He shrugged, taking a swallow of his milk.

"I met someone recently….and he's thinking about…..suicide," he said, not revealing more than he needed to.

"S-sui…," she started, before lowering her voice. "_Suicide_?" He nodded.

"I met him….a few days ago. He seems to be a good person…but I think he has secrets and…." He sighed.

"How did you get him to tell you that he'll suicide, if you met him a few days ago? You sure he wasn't joking…?" Aria asked.

"He was serious, I could tell," he said.

"Then why don't you tell the police?" she asked. "They'll…."

"No," he said. "That…I…I want to help him myself. If I tell anyone, it'll be betraying his trust…right?"

"It's not about trust, though, if he's really going to jump off a building or stab himself," she said. " This is a person's life you're talking about, Sept."

"I know…just…" he said, trailing off as he took a bite of his cake. "I have time…he promised that he'd do something for me."

"You sure he's not going to cuts his wrists or shoot himself today? Or if he's already dead?" she asked, still worried.

_He promised…_, he thought, feeling grief as he imagined Arkael's death. _He's a stranger, still…but why this? _His heart felt painful, but he showed a strained smile to Aria.

The pain abated as the image of Arkael's death faded from his mind.

"Check, please," he called to the waitress.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"A male lifemate." Gregori repeated those words to Mikhail, unbelieving. "A _male lifemate_."

"A male lifemate," Mikhail said again, nodding. "That is what Arkael believes…"

"So, basically…Arkael wants to meet the dawn," Savannah said. Mikhail nodded.

"Why, I wonder?" Raven asked, half to herself. "If that man is his lifemate…"

"Perhaps he feels that his bond with one of his own gender is wrong," Gregori said.

"_Wrong?_" Savannah asked, looking at her lifemate. "What about the married gay couples? Shouldn't they prove to him that…"

"Remember that he is ancient….and new ideas may come as a surprise to him," Mikhail said. "He could have good reason to meet the dawn."

"Still, we should try to help him," Raven said. "Vlad said that he is a master craftsman….to lose such a skilled one would be…"

"I'll go," Savannah offered, smiling at Gregori.

_You did that to force me to go,_ he thought to her. She shrugged. _You knew that I'd have to go if you did. _He sighed as Savannah gave him an impish grin.

"We'll go," he said. "The next night."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sorry for the late update…

I apologize if the Carpathians from the books are out of character…it's been a long time since I've read the series.

Still, review!!


	8. Chapter 8

Ooooh

Ooooh…more reviews )

Diclaimer in previous chapter, etc….sorry for how short the last chapter was….

Sorry I couldn't update sooner…I received four books in the mail and just _had_ to read them…

Hmm…what Gregori has in store, eh? Hopefully I won't go entirely out of character with him….but….shrugs

Wait and see, then…..and review….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So, who is he?" Aria asked.

"Hmm?" he said questioningly, pausing in the middle of his typing.

"That suicidal man you met a few days ago," she said patiently.

"His name is Arkael," Sept said, typing again….he needed to sort through his thoughts. He was thinking too much about Arkael, and it was strange. _If another stranger told me he was going to kill himself, would I feel the same? _he asked himself.

"What a weird name," she replied. Sept shrugged.

"Maybe," he said, suddenly thinking about Arkael's past. _How old is he? If he's a vampire…related to a vampire…does that mean he's a couple hundred years old? And his memories…_ "But a lot of people have weird names."

"Oh, it's your turn to go to Zel again….I have my turn tomorrow," Aria said, checking the clock, and giving a concerned look to her friend- who, to her eyes…seemed unfocused.

"I'll go, then," Sept replied, half his thoughts still circling around Arkael, something he tried to stop…but found himself unable to. _Why?_ he asked himself, and realized he didn't know why he felt so…strange…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Greetings,_ _Eleanor and Vlad,_ Gregori thought to the two Carpathians, in the form of an owl. Savannah echoed his greeting warmly, in the same form.

_Greetings_, Eleanor and Vlad replied, guessing that they were the ones to come pull Arkael out of his plans.

Gregori and Savannah dropped from their perch, changing into their human forms as they did so, casting dark shadows on the ground.

"We have come because of Arkael," Gregori said, confirming their guess. "I feel the presence of another Carpathian….so he has not met the dawn yet?"

They nodded. "We have not seen him for three nights," Eleanor said. "We…are not sure of his situation…and are glad that you two have come to help him."

"We will try to help him as best as we can," Savannah said. "But...if you can, tell me, do you believe that the man he says is his lifemate is truly his lifemate?" Her eyes were serious, concerned.

Eleanor and Vlad looked at each other for a moment before answering.

"We are not sure about the man," Vlad replied. "But…when he told us that he had a male lifemate, it sounded…" He paused, searching for the words to say.

"It didn't sound as if he lied," Eleanor said.

"Still…we must be cautious," Gregori said. "It could be a vampire's trap, making Arkael think that the man was his lifemate."

"Shouldn't you be more trusting?" Savannah asked. "It would be difficult for a Carpathian male to mistake someone for their lifemate. The signs are very clear- return of color, attraction, and the feeling of possession…"

At the note of teasing in her voice, Gregori growled.

"We met him…the man," Eleanor said, and their attention immediately refocused. "He had no vampiric taint."

"Can you give us his image and what you know of him?" Savannah asked, and opened her mind to Eleanor's and Vlad's. Gregori did the same.

They saw in the two's minds a green-eyed, black-haired man.

_He has power,_ Vlad thought to them, showing them how they probed his mind to meet a firm resistance.

_He meets all the qualities of a human lifemate, except for his gender, _Eleanor added.

"We will go meet Arkael next then," Gregori said, withdrawing from the couple's memories.

"I think it would be best if you two went to see his lifemate," Savannah suggested, her eyes thoughtful. "We need to know more, right?"

"Arkael would react badly if he felt one of us near his lifemate," Eleanor said.

"Then…hmm…," Savannah said, eyes twinkling. "I'll go. I'm younger than all of you…I won't seem as much of a threat as any of you. Anyway, I'm female…"

_If that man is his lifemate…how do you know that he is not attracted to women? _Gregori asked her through their bond, amused. Then he sent a feeling of worry and possession. _That man could be attracted to you, and both I and Arkael would have a problem on our hands…_

"Goodbye," Savannah said with a smile to Eleanor and Vlad, ignoring Gregori's comment. She changed into an owl, flying- sending a mental laugh to her lifemate.

_It's dangerous,_ a frustrated Gregori thought to her, changing as well.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael knew the moment that the sun set, and rose from his Carpathian sleep slowly. _I must feed,_ he thought to himself, feeling his thirst. Unbidden, the image of Sept entered his mind.

He pulled at his hair. _I can't drink from him- it would only drive him further away. _Then he paused in his thinking.

_Isn't that what you want, to drive him away? To cut off ties with him and give him a normal, happy life?_ A small part of his mind whispered to him.

_I can't…he needs me,_ he thought back to that part of himself. _He's afraid of his power…I need to help him control it!_

_How do you know? He could already have perfect control. And if you stay with him, your bond will only strengthen, and when you meet the dawn he will grieve. The bond will pull at him- and his grief will be _your _fault._

He shook his head, rising from the ground to see a full moon.

"I should help him as quickly as possible, so I can leave him sooner," he said to himself. _To spare him grief…_

_Tonight. I'll go help him tonight. And in the morning I can meet the dawn._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept felt someone next to him, and looked to his right. An owl sat on a branch- the same owl that was Arkael, that strange night that seemed so long ago. The owl tilted his head, his eyes that unmistakable shade of gray.

_Greetings, Sept, _he heard in his mind. He widened his eyes, hearing Arkael's voice. A grocery bag dropped from his hand, and he bent over to pick it up. When he rose, he saw Arkael standing in front of him, human- and felt relief.

"I'm still new to all this…so you shouldn't just, you know," Sept said, suddenly at a loss for what to say. "Oh, and….hello."

Arkael smiled, and the vulnerability Sept saw for a moment in those gray eyes made his heart ache.

"I will help you with your power today," Arkael said- deciding not to tell Sept that it would be his last night. "Do you mind if we…walk?"

Sept shook his head, wanting to trust Arkael.

As they walked, Arkael remembered his carving, left in his lifemate's room, forgotten because of what…happened right after. _So he has not found it, _he thought.

"Found what?" Sept asked, and Arkael realized that he'd forgotten to shield his thoughts.

"I was just thinking," Arkael said. "That is one of your…abilities, to hear thoughts and go into minds." Sept looked unbelieving for a second before remembering how he saw Arkael's thoughts. "Another was the lightning." As he said the words, they arrived at a secluded corner of the park, trees around them.

"If you do not mind…if you trust me, then will you allow me to go into your mind to show you how to control your powers…and to see what powers you have?" Arkael asked. "It can be an experience you'll regret, but it is the easiest way."

Sept nodded. "I'll do it," he said. "Just tell me what I have to do."

"Just open your mind, and try not to fight me," he said- carefully entering Sept's mind, sending reassuring waves into his mind.

Sept's mind opened to Arkael.

Sept's pulse raced, and Arkael could feel it. Thinking that it was because of fear, he withdrew slightly, only to find Sept pulling him into his mind- protesting the loss of their contact.

His own heartbeat accelerated, and he felt the hunger for blood he'd hidden rise up. He now regretted his choice- to not feed, as he would die in the morning. Sept's blood called to him.

He pulled back control to himself, pulling himself from Sept's mind. "I..I should feed first," he said roughly, and saw Sept look away. He knew why- his fangs were longer, and his eyes more feral. So close to losing control.

"Do..do I need to…," Sept began uncertainly. He saw Arkael fight with himself, trying to control his thirst. Arkael shook his head. "If I won't turn into a vampire when you…bite me…then you should. I'll imagine you taking blood from a young girl or something if…" He blushed, realizing that he'd probably insulted Arkael- though Arkael smiled.

The call of the blood was too strong.

"I will not harm you," he said to Sept. "Thank you." Sept looked at Arkael's eyes, and trusted him. Again, even though his mind told him that vampires were dangerous.

_I can just burn him if he tries to kill me, _he told his mind as he stepped closer to Arkael. "Do you just take it from my wrist or something?" he asked. "And…afterwards…will it heal?"

Arkael took his wrist. "I will heal it later," he said, his hunger beating at him.

He bent to one knee, his mouth over that wrist, and lightly, slowly bit into that vein…controlling the beast with the promise of blood.

The taste of Sept, the feeling of feeding, his attraction….he could not stop it. Arkael fed quickly, and licked the wound to close it. One hunger was satisfied- but his desire for a lifemate was not.

Sept looked down at him, his eyes hazed. Arkael could not stop himself before he rose and pressed his lips against Sept's, meeting those green eyes with his desperate gray ones.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_They really look like a lifemate couple,_ Savannah thought to Gregori, witnessing a passionate kiss. She felt discomfort from Gregori, and looked at him.

_We should not be watching,_ he said. _It's…not honorable, hiding in the shadows doing this._

_Then we should meet them…then we won't be hiding,_ she thought mischievously, flying down.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept felt a pair of soft lips against his, and could not stop himself from opening his lips as Arkael kissed him. _Wh-What?_ he thought to himself, confused.

He felt the solidity of a body against his, and resisted only for a few seconds before he relaxed, instinctively responding to the kiss. He was losing air, couldn't breathe…couldn't think. Thoughts just flew out of his head, leaving only feeling, gray eyes looking into his…

Then the kiss was broken, and Arkael looked behind him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Oooh, finally! Kiss….)

Left you at a cliffhanger…sorry….have to sleep, since I've been writing these chapters late at night.

What do you think? Reviews are very welcome. - it is suggested that you review to help the writer of this story (me) gain inspiration.


	9. Chapter 9

Thanks for the reviews

Thanks for the reviews….oh, and disclaimer is in one of the earlier chapters…

Hahaha…finally I got to write a kiss!! faints and has to be revived

I've no idea how long this is going to be, so if you have any ideas, feel free to express them in a review! Review, all of you, please!

Oh, and have you noticed that the # of my X marks is inconsistent? )

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael turned around, his gray eyes revealing some of his inner beast.

At the sight of two Carpathians, he took one difficult breath, trying to clear his mind. He could feel Sept's body so close to his….and the memory of those lips, those expressive eyes…

_Calm, calm,_ he told himself, and the female Carpathian laughed, and he realized that he had yet again forgotten to shield his thoughts. _This is how he has affected me…_

He glanced at Sept, whose eyes stared, confused, into his own- breathing with difficulty, in gasps- like he was.

_I'm sorry,_ Arkael thought to his lifemate, not knowing what else to say.

He then looked fully at the Carpathians, and focused his eyes so that only a whisper of the beast, a trace of his feeling for Sept, remained to be seen.

"Greetings," he said, keeping his voice steady. Normal, he hoped. "I am Arkael Krynlin, and you?" He pretended normalcy, that the kiss between him and Sept was no different from any other kiss between two lifemates.

"Greetings," they said in unison, hands linked.

"I am Gregori Daratrazanoff and this is my lifemate…"

"Savannah Durbrinsky," she cut in, and smiled. "May I ask for the name of your companion?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He heard the question, and knew that the woman was asking for his name.

"September Blue," Sept said- his brain was not disoriented enough for him to not follow the conversation….even if the feeling of that kiss, thoughts of that kiss, threatened to flood his mind. "Sept."

He looked at the man next to the woman, and looked at him for a moment. Well, who wouldn't? That man was…._huge._ Tall and muscular, his body showing that he protected the woman. He guessed that they were a couple immediately.

Sept looked at Arkael's back, wanting him to explain. _He _kissed _me,_ he thought to himself. _Unless it's a vampire tradition or something…why? That kiss…_

He fought to keep his thoughts controlled- feeling embarrassment, that strangers had seen their kiss…seen him, in such a state.

Arkael had similar thoughts and feelings, though Sept did not know of them.

"Is he your li.."

"Yes," Arkael replied, cutting off Savannah. Thinking this a sign of disrespect, Gregori glared at him, pulling Savannah close to him.

_He didn't want that man to know, _Savannah thought, calming Gregori. _I think that he wants to still meet the dawn._

_That will sadden his lifemate, _Gregori said, purposefully letting Arkael hear the words. Arkael winced.

Sept just stood there, as a series of physical signs and short words passed in front of him. Suddenly, he felt…as if he didn't belong there. He was left out of the conversation, and the tension he felt…it unsettled him.

"I'll go," he said, stepping haltingly to his left, unsteady. "Bye, Arkael."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael felt instinctive panic as his lifemate walked away from him, and without thinking, he ran to him. He wrapped his arms around Sept's body, and felt his lifemate's body stiffen. _Why? _he asked himself. _Why do I do this when I will be dead in a few hours? I will only cause him more pain! Why? Why? Why!_

Sept relaxed in his grip, and Arkael held that comforting warmth, not knowing what to do.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_You should claim him, _Savannah said mentally so that Arkael could hear her. _You do not need to meet the dawn…from what I saw, he reacted to that kiss._

Not only Arkael heard her, but Sept as well- and two sets of eyes glanced in her direction.

Arkael shook his head, and Sept looked at him as he shook off the embrace.

"What aren't you telling me?" he demanded. "Why did….all of this….happen? Why?" He clutched at Arkael's shirt, frustrated. "Why are you going to kill yourself? Why did you kiss me? Why did you stop me from going? Why!"

He shouted at the last word, and the air temperature around him rose several degrees- not enough to hurt, but enough to know that it had gotten warmer.

"Tell me!" he said.

"I can't," Arkael said, feeling helpless. "You're better off not knowing." His voice, in contrast to Sept's, was barely more than a whisper.

He tried to pull away from Sept's hold on him, but Sept clutched at him tightly.

"Tell me," Sept said, quietly, and Arkael made the mistake of looking into his lifemate's eyes. Those green eyes shone with tears- tears that did not make him look weak, but, rather, made his words stronger. His eyes, so accepting of anything Arkael would say, so desperate. A mirror of what Arkael felt.

Before he knew it, tears fell from his own gray eyes. _I cannot, I cannot, I cannot! _he cried. _I would destroy your happiness!_

"You're already making me unhappy!" Sept shouted back. "Everyday I see you in my thoughts, and you know what I dream of, these nights? _You._ _You_ crying, _you_ killing yourself. You know what you're doing to me, torturing me like this?"

He didn't care anymore. He grabbed Arkael's hair, and pulled him down, kissing him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_If they aren't lifemates…I don't know what else they can be, _Savannah thought to Gregori, who gave her a mental nod.

_It is unlikely that…this bond…is…pretended,_ he admitted, clearly uncomfortable with the scene they were witnessing.

_Let's go and leave the couple alone,_ she suggested. _From what I see, they'll settle the problem themselves._

Two owls flew away into the night.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They separated, gasping, fingers threaded into each other's hair.

"I…I," Sept stuttered, blushing slightly. As he looked up at Arkael, he was surprised. Was it just him, or did he see a blush on him as well…

"Do you…prefer men?" Arkael asked, cursing himself for his bluntness. But he needed the answer. Sept looked away from those intense gray eyes.

After a while, he looked up again. "Maybe," he said. "I think…so." _I never really liked kissing anyone in school…and afterwards, relationships didn't work too well,_ he thought. _If I like…kissing Arkael…so much…that probably means that I'm gay…_

He found the word almost foreign to him, never having described himself that way.

"Then, if I said that we were bound for life, would you mind?" Arkael asked, feeling a seedling of hope grow in his chest, in his heart.

"What?" Sept asked. "_Bound for life?_" His mind blanked.

Arkael nodded. "You know…that I share some qualities with a vampire." Sept nodded, once. "I am part of a race called the Carpathians…and the males of our race become color blind and cannot feel emotion after their first two centuries." Sept blinked, confused and unbelieving, but motioned for Arkael to go on. "This seems impossible for you…but…"

He reached for Sept's mind gently, and sent him images of him seeing nothing but black, white, and gray, of days of emptiness, filled with memories and his craft.

"But you see color now." Sept made it a statement. "_And_ you feel emotion."

"That is because of you….love," Arkael said, cautiously adding the term of endearment at the end of his sentence. Sept looked at him. "You are my lifemate. That's why I can see color, why I can feel again."

"Can you explain that?" Sept asked, leaning against a tree for support. He swallowed.

"Lifemates….are partners that share your life with you," Arkael said. "With a lifemate…one can see color, and feel. For each Carpathian, there exists only one lifemate, so that person is irreplaceable. And my lifemate is you, Sept."

"No way that all of this is true," Sept said, rubbing his head. "I've only known you for a few days, too…"

"You can believe in vampires and powers, but you can't believe in what I am telling you?" Arkael asked, smiling slightly. Then he sobered. "Lifemates are bound to each other…so if you dislike this bond…I can destroy it."

"How?" Sept asked, and Arkael felt pain at his question.

"I can meet the dawn before this bond grows stronger," he said. "Or I can avoid you for the rest of your life."

Neither plan seemed…good. _Either he dies or I never see him again, _Sept thought. "You _are_ telling the truth, right?" Arkael nodded. "Then…can you prove that we are really….lifemates?"

Arkael smiled. _So…perhaps he will accept me…_

"One thing lifemates feel is attraction…and I can truthfully say that I am attracted to you," he said, looking deeply into Sept's eyes. As Sept tried to look away, he held his head in place, keeping his gaze focused on his lifemate. He made his lifemate feel the connection between them, a golden thread.

"If you wish to run now, go, and I will not run after you. But if you will accept this bond…stay and be with me for all your days." Arkael said these words uncertainly, and his heart shook as his lifemate remained motionless.

"I can't make either decision," Sept said. "I don't want you to disappear from my life, but I don't know you well enough to…promise to be with you for the rest of my life." At Arkael's blank look, he glared. "What you want takes trust, and time."

"Then…for now, you do not regret that this bond? You will give me a chance?" Arkael dared to hope.

"Yes."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So…what did you think about this chapter? (I wrote it all in one sitting…heh…)

Your reading of my story is appreciated…though it would be nice if you could review, leave me with your thoughts and feelings. If my story was good…or bad…, really.

Next chapter will (hopefully) be done soon….


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer already in this story, etc

Disclaimer already in this story, etc

I'm so happy!! Reviews….and no flames like I was afraid of….

I feared that I was going too fast with that kiss in the last chapter..but…heh…

Cough cough Sept and Arkael _were_ heading in that direction anyway….right?

Oh well, reviews welcome…and the tenth chapter is here….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael's eyes looked so hopeful, so happy- and looking into his eyes, Sept was unable to move.

"It seems that our guests have left," Arkael said as he straightened, stepping back from Sept to give him room.

Sept stayed there, leaning on the tree. "Wait…what you said," Sept said. Arkael inclined his head, smiling. "About you not seeing color, what happens when a…Carpathian…doesn't find…or loses…his lifemate?" He spoke slowly, needing time to think about the right words to use. _Carpathian. Lifemate. Such words…so strange on my tongue._

"He gives into the urge to kill while feeding and becomes a vampire," Arkael said somberly, remembering who he had lost. He looked closely at his lifemate, and noticed his bewilderment. "When we lose emotions and colors…we battle with the beasts inside ourselves. Every time we take blood, there is that urge to drink all of it, to feel something by killing…" Sept swallowed, uneasy. "Do not worry…I have you now…I will not kill while feeding, not by my own will."

"Then, what happens?" Sept asked. "What happens, when you…kill while drinking blood?"

"We become vampire, insane. Without honor, without a lifemate…..we become blood thirsty vampires," Arkael replied. Sept walked close to Arkael, sensing his old emotional scars.

"Let's go," Sept said, picking up his forgotten grocery bag.

"Where to?" Arkael asked, following his lifemate.

"To my place…right? You still need to teach me my…powers," Sept said. Arkael then remembered his conviction to meet the dawn…and paused.

"You do not mind this, right?" he asked.

"Mind what?" Sept asked back, still walking. Arkael grasped his hand lightly, walking beside him.

"This bond, this attraction," Arkael said quietly. "You do not mind it?"

"No…it helps you, right?" Sept said.

"But this means that you will not have relationships with others- woman or man. This bond comes with difficulties…disadvantages," Arkael said.

"We'll figure it out," Sept said as they reached a wide street. "Until then…promise me you won't kill yourself." He looked to his right, his eyes determined, tightening his grasp on Arkael's hand.

"On my word," Arkael said, unexplainably happy. "I will not meet the dawn." _Unless he rejects this, I will stay…_

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Eleanor watched her son paint, smiling. Vlad stood next to her, and grinned.

"If only Byron could see this," he said to his lifemate. "He would be surprised."

Josef was painting the street and the river beside it, a beautiful arrangement of dark colors- with only a few dabs of bright colors for the moon and streetlights.

"Greetings," Savannah said as she and Gregori walked down the side of the river, nearing them.

"Do you have news of Arkael and the man?" Eleanor asked, almost eagerly.

"They were fine, last we saw them," Savannah said with a winning smile. "That kiss…" Gregori rubbed his head.

"I hope I never see it again," he mumbled.

"What can I say? You need to be familiar with new ideas, concepts," Savannah teased. "You're not too old, are you?"

Eleanor and Vlad observed their conversation with smiles- and Josef laughed.

"Well, anyway," Savannah said. "When we flew to them, they were kissing. Then, when we introduced ourselves, the man…September Blue…tried to walk away from Arkael. Arkael, like any male Carpathian, responded by pulling his lifemate to him. And so, after an outburst from the man, he kissed Arkael…." She smiled at her lifemate, at his discomfort.

"So…that man, September, he is truly Arkael's lifemate?" Eleanor asked.

"We believe so," Gregori said. "It is unlikely that he is anything else…though we should be careful, since we have not looked into his mind."

"And Arkael will not meet the dawn?" Vlad asked. Savannah shook her head.

"His lifemate wouldn't let him," she said.

_We should tell your father of this,_ Gregori thought to his lifemate as he contacted Mikhail.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As they walked, their linked hands were stared at. Arkael knew that his lifemate did not like the looks they received, and so cloaked them in an illusion, an illusion that hid Arkael.

When they reached Sept's apartment door, Arkael watched as his lifemate took a ring of keys from his pocket, choosing one of them. Turning the lock with a swift motion and opening the door with a light push, Sept walked in.

"Will you invite me to your home?" Arkael asked politely. Sept looked at him incredulously.

"I told you to come here…of course you can come in," Sept said.

"Then…," Arkael said as he stepped in. "Thank you, Sept." Sept shrugged as he took off his coat and hung it on a hook next to the door, and extended one arm to close the door.

Arkael kept watching his lifemate, his simple motions. The blue of his shirt, the dark gray of his pants…the green of his eyes. _He has given me so much,_ he thought to himself, this time correctly shielding his thoughts. _The colors…_these _colors. My life will not be the same…and it is because of him._

He reached out and held Sept close to him. His lifemate resisted for a moment before relaxing against his shoulder.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_What are you doing?_ his mind asked him, outraged. Yet Sept could not pull himself back…not from the comfort of Arkael's shoulder.

Arkael was dressed in a soft, thick shirt- and Sept relished the feel of the material, as well as the smell of Arkael. He couldn't describe the feelings he felt.

He looked at Arkael's face, and the expression he saw on his face. So open, so vulnerable. A slight smile tugged at Arkael's mouth, as one hand rose to brush Sept's hair.

Sept swallowed, his heartbeat accelerating, and stepped back. Arkael did not pull him back to his shoulder. They stood there, one of Arkael's hands on Sept's hair- the other resting on his shoulder.

"This lifemate thing," Sept said difficultly. "It's for…forever?" Arkael nodded. "You're not lying, right?"

Arkael shook his head, and feeling Sept's need to know the truth, he established a mental connection between them.

He _made_ his lifemate feel, know the truth. Made them both feel the lifemate bond…and what came with it. Minutes passed as he shared his knowledge with his lifemate.

Sept blushed, and sighed. _A blush. What am I? A schoolgirl? _Uncertainty wormed its way into his heart, and he bit his lip.

"Love, we still need to teach you of your powers," Arkael said gently, pulling Sept away from his thoughts. "Like you said before…we'll figure all of this out. We can take all this slowly." Sept nodded, and walked with Arkael to the living room.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_We have good news, Mikhail,_ Gregori sent across his link with the Prince. For a while, he did not respond.

_Good news?_ Mikhail sent to him across the link.

_It is unlikely that Arkael will meet the dawn now…and that man he says is his lifemate may in truth be that,_ Gregori sent back.

_He is, without a doubt, _Savannah added. _We saw them _kiss,_ after all…_

_Kiss?_ Mikhail thought to them, surprised.

_Well,…that's what lifemates, along with other things..right?_ Savannah sent, and both Mikhail and Gregori felt her mental laughter at their shared discomfort.

_Ah, I knew it,_ she thought. _People your age find it difficult to accept homosexuality._ Then she gave a physical laugh, and Gregori smiled at the sound.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hah! There it is, the 10th chapter!!

This story may take anything between fifteen and twenty five chapters…so, what do you prefer? Longer, or shorter?

Oh, and reviews are VERY welcome….so review!! I don't know if the direction this story's headed is pleasing to read….so reviews give me…how do I say this? Ideas? A feel of what you think, anyway. )


	11. Chapter 11

For those reviews

For those reviews…here is another chapter )

Oh, and I promise that they'll be some action soon…but our protagonists are still not ready for _that_ scene….notice, I rated this teen…

Though, hmm…how far can I go with "teen"…..)

Heh. Oh, and other action will come later as well…so be patient…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael reached for Sept's mind as they sat on his sofa, next to each other. Hands linked.

_You can control lightning ,as we know, _he thought to his lifemate through their bond. After studying Sept a moment more, he smiled. _Your other proven power, that of thought-reading and the mind…it is powerful. I am sure that there are few of us who can enter your mind forcibly and not suffer…_ He felt pride, that he had such a lifemate- a strong lifemate who he would willingly share his life with.

Sept looked uncertainly at him. "But how do I use…and not use..them?" he asked, an image of him burning Aria in his mind. He winced.

Arkael mentally showed him a memory- a man calling down lightning from the sky. _That was my brother, _he explained to Sept, an edge of sorrow coming into his voice. Sept held his hand tighter, as if trying to take away that pain from his lifemate.

_He turned into a vampire and was killed…it was long ago, _Arkael thought to Sept, dismissing his sorrow. _But before he was a vampire, he was a powerful hunter… _At Sept's confusion, he explained it more clearly. _A hunter is a Carpathian who tracks down and kills vampires._

_Are you a hunter?_ Sept asked, slipping into mental speech.

_No, I was not born with the power,_ Arkael thought. _I am a craftsman…a woodcarver, a maker of things. But I will never be able to destroy vampires as well as my brother did._

_Why did you show me the memory? _Sept asked.

_I wanted you to see what you did, _Arkael replied. _You were angry, yes? That anger made you realize that you had the power to destroy the vampire…hunters do not do it much differently. They direct their will, anger, and power to the vampire, and call lightning from the skies._

_So, how do I control it?_ Sept asked, attentively listening to Arkael.

_You control your anger, and become aware of your power…your ability to harm,_ Arkael answered. _When you feel angry at someone that you wish not to kill, you calm yourself. And when you want to kill…you direct your power, control it so it hits only the vampire and not anyone else._

Sept nodded. _And my other…power? The thought reading?_

_That one…here,_ Arkael thought at him, sending him another memory. Sept felt how Arkael felt, years ago, when he probed the mind of an abusive father. Sept swallowed as he saw what Arkael found in the man's mind, and Arkael sent him a feeling of comfort. _See how I enter his mind…and how I shield myself from his thoughts afterwards. _Arkael willed him to _know_, to remember.

Sept saw, and remembered it all- the shielding, the entering, the clash of wills between Arkael and the vampire that controlled the man.

_What happened to the child?_ he asked Arkael.

_I took her to a couple who had no children…and who treated her well. When I last saw her, those centuries ago, she was married and had two children,_ Arkael reassured him. _I erased the memories of her father from her mind, and healed her wounds._

Sept sighed with relief.

_I believe that you have heard enough?_ Arkael asked, gently. Sept nodded, and leaned back on the sofa.

_Tell me of…Carpathians next, please, _Sept thought to him. Arkael smiled.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So they will be fine, then?" Raven asked her lifemate, who nodded slowly.

"Gregori and our daughter believe so…we should trust their judgment," Mikhail said. "They said that Arkael and his lifemate were kissing." He looked unsettled for a moment before regaining his composure.

"Oh, my poor lifemate," Raven teased, like Savannah had. "Homosexuality is not a comfortable idea to you, is it?"

"I…" He sighed, and rubbed his head. "It's just…nothing like this has ever occurred."

"But we need to face it sooner or later," Raven said. "They _will _be coming to the mountains, right? If even to pay respect to the Prince." She smiled.

"Not for a while…and we can deal with it then," he said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A sudden sound jolted them from their shared thoughts and memories, and his lifemate went to pick up the phone.

Arkael stayed on the sofa, watching his lifemate. _What will we do?_ he thought to himself. _We are not like other lifemates…this is all so strange, yet…everything I do with him feels _right. His lifemate picked up the phone.

"Hello?" he asked. Then he smiled. "Aria! Why are you calling at this hour?" After a long pause, Sept laughed, and Arkael's heart- like always- ached. "You asked him out? He's…how do I say this? You're too good for him. That guy…trust me. I lived with him for two years, and I have to say…" He paused for a dramatic effect. "I love living alone. He's messy, inconsiderate…and he'll cheat on you. I've seen it, Aria. Trust me."

There was another long pause. "That's good. Bye, then."

Sept looked back at Arkael, who looked at him intensely. "That woman….your friend…she is not your lover?" he asked. Sept shook his head.

"Of course not! Dating her would be like dating my sister..." His voice trailed off as he realized what Arkael was thinking. "This lifemate bond….it involves being faithful to one another, right?"

Arkael nodded. "Sleeping with another would be unpleasing to both lifemates," he said.

"Then you have nothing to worry about," Sept said cheerfully. "If we have this bond, then I can't cheat on you…" He stopped, searching Arkael's eyes. "If…we are considered…" _Boyfriends sounds too childish,_ he thought. _And lovers…we haven't been that far yet. _He blushed.

"Lifemates," Arkael said, ending Sept's sentence for him. "Not…boyfriends only, nor lovers _yet,_ but still, lifemates."

He smiled as Sept's blush deepened- as his lifemate averted his eyes.

He reached for his lifemate, holding him. "We can do what….boyfriends…do, yes? Even if not what lovers do," Arkael said, purposefully making his lifemate blush.

"I…I've never…," Sept started, before stopping, embarrassed.

"Me neither," Arkael said. Sept looked at him, confused.

"I didn't finish my sentence, you know," Sept said.

"I've never done anything I want to do to you with a man," Arkael said, slightly too blunt if Sept's withdrawal was any indication. "This…all this…we can go slowly." He reassured his lifemate, his heart turning in his chest. Sept nodded.

Arkael leaned forward, meeting his lifemate's lips with his, not pushing. A light contact.

"Everything will happen in time," he said against Sept's lips. Sept swallowed, but stood still. "Relax, my love…I will not push."

He did not push, but waited for Sept to lean forward, kissing him uncertainly.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria turned off her cell phone, and sighed. "And I thought he was a good guy too," she said. _Sept lived with Adrian for two years…he knows best. _She was dressed in her pajamas- and slid into bed. _I won't date him…not if he cheats. I've had enough cheaters, _she thought to herself sleepily.

She fell asleep instantly, and dreamt. Dreamt of colorless landscapes and men that turned into animals, of battles and blood.

And dreamt of a man, standing in the middle of most her dreams, a dark shadow.

And when she woke up, she remembered it only as a dream, the dreams she'd had all her life.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So…there's that bit of Aria at the end…

I'm considering adding her and her lifemate to this story to give the plot more complexity…what do you think?

Oh…and I realize that I forgot about Savannah's twin babies….oops.

Just think of this as after every Carpathian book, but in some weird alternate universe where Savannah did not have a baby….k?

Reviews are much appreciated. A big THANK YOU!! to all of my reviewers!! huggs


	12. Chapter 12

Sorry for the lateness

Sorry for the lateness….I was captured by Maple Story and Facebook )

Thanks for all the reviews! I will consider your thoughts on this story as I am writing….more surprises lay in waiting…. I'm not sure if writing when I have a cold affects the story….hmm...

I've just noticed….a lot of the characters' names start with 'A'…..0.0….you don't mind, do you?

Oh, well….here is the next chapter! And remember to review!

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept woke up, slightly disoriented before memories assaulted him. He groaned as he rubbed his eyes and leapt out of bed, almost tripping on the corner of a blanket. He still remembered the feeling of Arkael's lips on his, and those gray eyes….

_I have to stop thinking like this, _he thought to himself. As he walked to the bathroom, he decided that a cold shower would clear his head.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria walked to work, and passed a familiar face. "Adrian!" she called to him, surprised. "I thought you didn't walk here on your way to work."

He walked to her, a tall figure with tanned skin and messy brown hair- someone women looked at twice.

"We're going out tonight, right?" he asked, charmingly.

"I'm sorry, I don't think a relationship with you is a good idea," Aria said, smiling. Remembering her promise to Sept.

"But a dinner out as friends is okay?" he asked again. Aria paused at that.

"I have plans with Sept….but we can all go have dinner, I guess," she replied. He looked displeased for a moment before his face smoothened.

"At the restaurant we decided on before, then," he said. He checked his watch. "Bye, then." Aria nodded, saying her "bye" before calling Sept.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept and Aria left the office after arranging several shipments of jewelry and a painting to be made.

"When's dinner going to be, again?" Sept asked, walking with Aria at his side.

"In two hours," Aria replied. "Why?"

"Nothing," Sept said. "I want to ask a friend of mine if he wants to come too, that's all." He fidgeted, not his usual self.

"Call him, then," Aria said, looking at Sept. "You're…different, today. Tell me what happened." Her eyes cut into Sept's, two orbs of brown. Sept hesitated before answering.

"You know that guy I told you about, the suicidal one?" Sept asked, hesitantly, as they stopped for a traffic light. His next words were whispered. "I think I'm…homosexual."

"What?" she exclaimed, almost shouting. At the stares of the people around them, she dragged Sept to another street, walking briskly. "You've dated before. You've never showed any sign of liking guys. So….?" Sept felt relieved that Aria didn't sound too angry, or disgusted….and that the street they were walking on was empty.

"It…just happened, that's all," Sept said slowly, eyes uncertain.

"Wait...what does the suicidal guy have to do with all this?" she asked, thinking aloud. "Don't tell me….you _fell in love _with him?"

"It's just….he's a nice guy…and…," Sept said, sighing. "I don't know. I just don't know. When I'm with him…the feelings I get. I've never felt that way about anyone….. from any gender."

Aria nodded. "So, when are you going to make a move?" she said, almost teasingly. Sept blushed slightly.

"Actually, about that…he kissed me….," Sept said. Aria's eyes widened.

"Go on, bring him to dinner with us. I want to meet him," she said. "Run to him…I need time to digest all of this."

Sept looked apologetically at his friend for a moment. "See ya, then," he said to her, rushing off.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

She was confused. No, cross that. Very confused.

Her best friend told her he was gay. That was enough to think about. _He never looked at guys more than friends! I've even seen him look at women with interest! _Still, she could accept that bit of information, after….some…time. There could be some memories she had to uncover about that…

She sat there, in the restaurant, as she went over the most surprising thing he'd said. _He likes the suicidal guy,_ Aria thought. _And that guy _kissed _him. How long have they known each other? A week? _She hoped that her friend knew what he was doing, as she worried.

Yet she knew that Sept was being truthful- she knew when he was lying. He didn't lie….so sooner or later, she had to meet the guy he said that he liked. _If Sept can tell me who to date and who not to date, the least I can do is return the favor…_

She saw Adrian, and smiled politely as he gave her another charming smile.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Arkael? _Sept called to his lifemate.

_I am coming, Sept, _Arkael thought back. In moments, he stepped from the shadows, in his normal form.

He smiled at his lifemate, stepping closer to Sept. "What is it?" he asked.

"Well, I told Aria….about us," Sept said. Arkael stiffened, and Sept noticed the change immediately.

_About Carpathians? _he asked Sept. Sept shook his head.

"I told her…about…you know," Sept said, uncomfortably. Arkael felt uncertain as well, but hid his doubts. He reached for his lifemate.

"So?" he asked Sept. "What was her response?"

"She didn't look angry," Sept replied. "But she wants to meet you…so will you have dinner with us?" He paused. "You don't need to eat or anything…."

He looked at Arkael, again uncertain. "Are you….hungry?" he asked. Arkael shook his head, his smile widening.

"No, I do not need your concern," he said. "I will feed later."

One of his hands rose to Sept's ear, enjoying the feel of Sept's soft black hair. Another went to touch Sept's lips, as Arkael's eyes darkened with emotion.

Sept swallowed, and Arkael withdrew. "So, when is this dinner?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria nodded again, only concentrating partly on Adrian's voice. Her eyes went yet again to the restaurant door. She sipped at her iced tea, smiling at Adrian yet again, as he told her of how some baseball team beat another. _I don't care about baseball, _she thought, almost wishing that someone would come along and strangle Adrian.

Finally, she saw Sept walk through the door. She exhaled in relief.

"Sept!" she called. Sept moved towards her table, a man walking behind him.

_Must be the suicidal one, _she thought. She studied him- slightly taller than Sept, with a lean but strong build, deep gray eyes, long black hair. He was dressed neatly in a simple blue shirt and black pants. _Good looking, at least. _She could admit that much.

"Adrian, nice to see you again," Sept said after smiling at Aria. Adrian shrugged, with a muffled "hello".

"Hello….and you are?" Aria asked the man with Sept, when they were all seated. Her eyes looked into his with unconcealed curiosity and strength. _If you break his heart, I'll beat you up,_ she thought at him with her stare.

"Arkael," he replied, extending a hand. "And you are?"

"Aria."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Don't read her thoughts, _Sept thought at Arkael as he shook hands with Aria. _Please? _He felt a mental apology from Arkael.

_Sorry…I won't after this moment,_ he thought back. _Her thoughts as she shook my hand…they were…strong. _He showed Sept Aria's thought, and Sept smiled.

_Sounds like her,_ Sept thought, with a mental laugh.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They split the bill in four, even as Arkael and Adrian fought over it- without violence, but still…

Sept and Arkael walked alongside Aria. "We need to talk," she said. "So….let's go to Sept's place." Her eyes looked challengingly at Arkael, who smiled and nodded.

Sept shrugged, and nodded as well, following Aria as she walked to his place.

_You don't mind this, do you? _he asked Arkael.

_No, I do not mind speaking with her, _Arkael replied. _She is an important friend, yes? It is right for her to protect you…you know she has power?_

_What? _Sept asked, confused.

_She dreams of the past, _Arkael explained. _It would not surprise me if she had a Carpathian lifemate._

_What?!_ Sept thought to his lifemate. _You should have told me that before!_

"We're here, take out your keys," Aria told Sept, who quickly hid his surprise. He hadn't noticed the passing of the streets, most of his concentration on Arkael.

He opened the door, and hoped that his life wouldn't get more…different….than it already was….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

What do you think? Like it? Hate it?...

Well, that's what reviews are for )

Oh, and Aria's lifemate will come later. Like, 2-4 chapters later. Any thoughts you have on this story…please put in a review. Reviews make me happy…


	13. Chapter 13

Only one review

Ok, sorry for the long delay- I got sick, and then had projects mercilessly piled on top of me…. Thanks to all my reviewers…hugs Hmm….ambeauty calls for explicit scenes? My friends would…panic..if I wrote one, but….smiles with an insane glint to her eyes Goldsparkler did say that if I wrote it _delicately_, I could probably keep my rating……) If this chapter does not keep with my rating, tell me….and I might replace it, or change the rating….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept opened the door, his head suddenly filled with too many thoughts.

_Do not worry, love, _Arkael reassured him. _I do not feel a lifemate bond connecting her to a Carpathian…not now. _

_But it's possible, right? _Sept asked. _And…she dreams of the _past_? Why did I not know about this before? Why doesn't she know about it?_ He felt himself almost panicking, and hated himself for it.

_We'll…solve everything, in time, _Arkael thought to his lifemate as they ascended a flight of stairs. _But, for now… _Sept felt Arkeal hesitating. _For now, I must prove to her that I will be…a good…boyfriend, to you._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria sat patiently on Sept's sofa as Sept went to his kitchen to get a box of cookies…and a glass of milk. As always, he asked her if she wanted any. It relieved her, to know that Sept was no different than he was before…only that, now, she knew that he was…gay. It still circled back to that thought. _Sept is like a brother to me…and to find that he is… _She sighed. _But it's not like he can change what he is…I'll have to accept this all sooner or later._

"Have you known Sept for a long time?" she asked the man sitting across from her, on a wooden chair, a man whose eyes often strayed to the figure of Sept, searching for his cookies.

Arkael shook his head, meeting Aria's eyes.

"Then, are you two…." Her voice trailed off, leaving her to convey the rest of her question through her searching eyes. She crossed her legs, resting her arms on one knee.

"I love him, I can truthfully tell you that much," Arkael said. "We….we have a relationship, yes." He looked uncertain before he asked what had been troubling him. "Do you…do you like him in that way?"

Aria looked horrified for a moment, shocked. "Where did you get _that_ idea?" she asked. Arkael shrugged.

"Here, cookies," Sept said, cutting into the conversation. He set down a glass of soda in front of Aria- and a glass of milk in front of himself. He set down the box of cookies on the low table in front of the sofa before dropping onto the sofa himself.

"No glass for Arkael?" Aria asked, confused. Sept paused.

"I'm allergic to milk….and have never liked soda," Arkael explained smoothly, saving Sept from answering.

"So….," Aria started, looking at Sept, who shifted in his seat uncomfortably. "You two are…dating, right?" Sept looked at Arkael, who smiled and nodded, before nodding himself. "Hmm…." She looked critically at Arkael. "At least, for his first gay relationship, he chose a guy that doesn't look too bad….." She smiled. "Just to get everything straight….if you break Sept's heart I'll chase you down and beat you to a pulp."

"Aria!" Sept exclaimed. He sighed. "You know, I can take care of my own heart, and chase him down _myself_…"

"But you would do the same for me, if someone I loved broke my heart," Aria said. She looked at Arkael, challenging. "So….?"

"I will not harm him, physically or emotionally," Arkael said, expression somber. "Hurting him….I would never want that. To raise a hand against him, or say cutting words….his pain is my pain. I cannot hurt him unless I wish for myself to feel his pain." He leaned closer to the table. "I never want Sept to feel any pain…."

Sept the emotion beneath Arkael's words, and inhaled sharply. The depth of Arkael's feelings for him….he did not think that he would ever be able to show the same amount of love. Arkael reached for Sept's mind as he felt the change in his emotions, whispering a mental stream of endearments. Sept gave a mental shake of the head, pushing Arkael gently away.

"You aren't one of the ones that believes in being dominant in a relationship, are you?" Aria asked. "Sept isn't a lily, or a rose. You can't protect him like…..like a young girl, you know? If he starts having doubts, or acting vulnerable all the time…." Aria left an unspoken threat in the air.

"Don't worry, Aria," Sept said, trying to comfort his friend. "It's not just him wanting to protect me." He looked at Arkael. "I want to protect him too….I don't want him to feel any pain." Arkael's eyes softened, and he reached with one hand to stroke Sept's hair.

Aria looked surprised, but hid her shock. She got up, taking a cookie with her. "It's late, I have to go," she said, picking up her bag. Arkael and Sept got up as well, and walked with her to the apartment entrance.

They said their goodbyes, and Aria walked away, thoughtful.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As Sept locked the door, Arkael pulled him to him, gently. His lifemate leaned into him, and he swallowed difficultly, yearning to feel his lifemate's lips….his hands on his back…. To see his green eyes become clouded as he kissed him….

He noticed the direction his thoughts had been taking, and blushed slightly. He looked down, at Sept, hoping that his lifemate was not in his mind, seeing his thoughts.

Sept looked back at him, blushing as well, smiling uncertainly. Arkael's heart almost stopped at the look on his lifemate's face, and fought a feeling of possession. "I….I am sorry for my thoughts, love," he said, pressing closer to Sept, his arms lightly circling around his body.

"It's…we….," Sept started, before pausing. "We…this lifemate thing, it involves…."His traitorous mind filled the blank for him, and he looked away, still blushing. Arkael felt his lifemate's thoughts, and chuckled.

"Did I not tell you we could take this slowly?" he asked.

"Yeah, but…if you want to…." Sept kept his eyes averted. "I..I don't mind it, you know… But I've never…."

"You are the first man I've felt attracted to," Arkael said. "I am not sure…of how to…" He looked uncomfortable as he finished his sentence. "How to love you."

Sept looked at Arkael, laughing. "So, we're both inexperienced. That's a sure way to court disaster, you know." Arkael joined his lifemate, laughing, as he stepped away.

"We can learn as we go along," Arkael said, reaching for his lifemate's hand. _Shall we?_ he asked Sept, not pushing him into a decision. Sept felt their attraction, felt love. He stepped forward, dragging Arkael to his room.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept paused at his door. _We need not do this, love, _Arkael thought to him, touched that his lifemate would try so hard for him, for them. _We can both learn more, take this slowly…_

Sept opened his door, to reveal his blue-and-white bedroom, and the large bed. As he hesitated, he felt a connection between Arkael and _something_ in his shelf. He stepped closer to the shelf, shuffled through paper until his hand clasped a wooden object.

He looked at Arkael, who was looking at his hand with surprise. He glanced down, at the figure in his hands. A wooden man that looked….like him. It was so detailed, from the curls on the back of his head to his clothes. A smile curved on the mouth of the figure.

"Wow," he said, at a loss for what to say. _Did you carve this?_

"Yes," Arkael said. "It was….when I thought to meet the dawn. I wanted to leave something of me behind with you, even though it was a childish idea…."

Sept stepped close to Arkael, placing the figure on the desk. He kissed him, slowly and gently. Arkael returned the kiss, reaching around his lifemate to hold him closer. Sept's hands were threaded in his hair, pulling the long strands from the tie Arkael had put them in.

Arkael's hands reached slightly under his lifemate's shirt, and smiled as Sept gasped, clutching tighter to Arkael. He caressed a side of Sept's face with his free hand, and brought them both to the bed, kissing his lifemate's cheek gently.

They spent that night together, sleeping with their arms around each other.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

That wasn't so bad, was it? ducks from flying objects….Now, I know it wasn't explicit or anything, really…but I did imply some things. You can leave it to your imagination to fill the blanks in…


	14. Chapter 14

Thank you to my (faithful) reviewers that have given me such a good 13th chapter present

Thank you to my (faithful) reviewers that have given me such a good 13th chapter present…..my reviews have reached the number of….40!!

I'm so happy! (I jump up and down in my seat, overjoyed)

Anyway, to answer your questions and…concerns….well, read on! (insert and author's "cough-cough" after the first sentence) ) Be nice and allow me my Teen rating……

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael woke with his lifemate's warmth next to him, feeling emotionally sated- if not satisfied in other ways….

Last night, he had taken his lifemate in his arms, kissed and gotten near to…to the act of love. Yet, he did not go further. He knew not how to love Sept, after all- it was not wise for him to put Sept in danger, even if unknowingly. He sighed, and pulled his lifemate closer to him, rubbing his chin into those black curls.

His lifemate made a sound, a sleepy "hmm?"….and Arkael could not resist stroking the side of that beloved face, meeting those lips with his own. His lifemate's eyes opened slowly, half-awake- and a lighter shade of green than it was usually. Arkael smiled, lips still on Sept's.

"Good Morning," he murmured against those lips, his gray eyes looking deeply into Sept's sleepy green ones.

Sept jumped backwards, almost falling from the bed. Fortunately, Arkael caught his arm, pulling his lifemate to him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael caught him, pulled him gently to his chest.

_He smells good,_ his mind thought, slightly hazed from sleep. That scent, uniquely Arkael's, comforted him. _His long hair, without the hair tie, looks s-_ He stopped himself before he could finish that thought, blushing. Arkael's hair did look

good- dark long strands that framed his face, a river of black with dark gray hints.

"Good Morning," he said, pulling away slightly to see Arkael's face.

"Mmhmm," Arkael mumbled, a sound deep from his throat, as he inhaled the smell of Sept's hair, attractively disheveled from sleep.

"It's morning, shouldn't you be….sleeping, or something?" Sept asked, noticing the wash of early morning coming from behind the curtains. He looked at Arkael, concerned.

"I will stay here until night…if I do not come into full contact with the sun, I will not be burned…." Arkael smiled, though Sept knew he felt weakened by the sun.

"You should've….gone back to that room in the ground you live in, last night," Sept said, feeling guilty. He'd been the one to grab onto Arkael like a child to a teddy bear. It was because of that, of his desire to stay with Arkael….that Arkael was in danger.

"Not only your…desire," Arkael said, a teasing note entering his voice. It surprised him, that he could tease. So many centuries without that…. _He cannot be replaced, he is my lifemate….I need to court him properly,_ he thought, worried. _I must be careful…I need to learn more to love him well. _There had never been another time that he'd wished he were younger, a younger Carpathian that would know more of such modern things.

His mind remembered Eleanor's and Vlad's son, Josef….and he smiled.

"You're thinking about something, and you're hiding it from me," Sept said, stating fact. He did not sound hurt, but, rather….curious.

"It's a…surprise," Arkael said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He saw Sept off, hiding his growing weakness. He scanned the area for vampires and hunters, and shielded himself quickly, before falling asleep in his lifemate's living

room, clutching a pillow. His heart and breathing stopped.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He woke as soon as the sun set, and rose slowly, stretching his muscles. He fashioned for himself a long sleeved shirt of blue cloth and pants….jeans, if he'd remembered correctly. His hair, he tied back, combing and cleaning himself with his power. He smiled at his reflection in the mirror._ Soon, you will be able to love Sept, _he told himself, comforting the beast that fought against its chains.

_Vlad, Eleanor? _He sent the thought to the two Carpathians.

_Yes? _he heard from Vlad.

_I wish to talk to Josef of my lifemate…,_ he replied. _I think I may need his…advice._

His _advice? _Eleanor asked, mentally laughing. He gave a mental nod.

_We are in our city house…_ Vlad sent an image, a location, to Arkael.

_Thank you,_ Arkael sent back.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Arkael and his lifemate seem to be making…quite some progress, _Eleanor sent to Savannah. The young Carpathian smiled, and Gregori frowned at the thoughts in Savannah's head. They conversed for several minutes before Gregori sighed in frustration, and Savannah smiled.

_Thanks for the information,_ Savannah thought back. _Goodbye._

"You thought about those two kissing, and _smiled_," Gregori growled. "You should not smile when thinking about any kisses that do not come from me."

"Oh?" Savannah said, smiling up at her lifemate with unconcealed challenge in her eyes- though the playful light Gregori saw in them….

Gregori kissed her, demandingly.

_It is a bad time to cut in, but…,_ they heard Mikhail send to their minds. He gave a mental cough.

_Gregori, _Mikhail addressed his second in command. _There have been several vampire attacks…one of our hunters, Marc, fell yesterday. _A stream of information entered Gregori from Mikhail's mind, and Gregori's eyes widened.

_An organized group of vampires other than Razvan's? _he asked, almost unbelieving. _How could this have occurred?_

_There seems to be a group of older vampires that are controlling the group from behind,_ Mikhail thought to them grimly. _We know now that they have several hiding spots around the world…one near our mountains. It will be best if we call many of our hunters back to face them._

_But…what if this is a trap of Razvan's to draw our attention away from other parts of the world? _Gregori asked.

_I will not call all of our hunters, only enough to kill off these vampires without our children and lifemates harmed._

_I will come, _Gregori thought. He looked at Savannah, who nodded. _We will leave tomorrow._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So…?" Josef asked the man in front of him, the ancient Carpathian that looked so troubled. They'd been sitting silently in the living room for a while now, and it made him uncomfortable, to be studied by those strange gray eyes.

"Do you know…of love between two males?" Arkael asked, hesitantly. "I know not of how to…love my lifemate."

Josef blinked, and then coughed. "Ah…" He started laughing.

Arkael stared at him, and he immediately sobered.

"You're many centuries old. You should've observed the Greeks, or.." Josef paused. "It's strange. You're more than a milenia older than me, probably, and you're asking me advice on…." He coughed again. Arkael raised an eyebrow.

"I never spent time on that topic," he said smoothly. "During the time, I was…obsessed with art…." Arkael's thoughts of Sept pushed him to his next question. "How do I love him without hurting him?"

At that moment, Eleanor entered the room, barely controlling her grin. "Is this discussion appropriate for Josef?" she asked Arkael. "He's still young, you know….you may be corrupting his mind. Like those games he plays."

"I won't be corrupted so easily," Josef said, grinning back.

"So…what must I do?" Arkael asked.

Eleanor and Josef smiled at him, and took him to the bookstore.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept waited for Arkael, feeling lonely- even though Arkael touched his mind every ten minutes, giving him a mental hug now and then. He went and reheated some pasta, eating it on the sofa.

The window opened, and an owl entered. Within a few seconds, the owl changed into a man- his Arkael. He paused at his thought. _His _Arkael?

"So possessive," Arkael teased. Then, Sept noticed the plastic bag Arkael carried.

"Books?" Sept asked, recognizing the familiar shape.

Arkael nodded, then blushed. "I did not wish to hurt you…if we ever…." He sighed, went back a few steps in his thought process. "Do you…do you want me that way? As a…lover?"

Sept looked at Arkael, so vulnerable, shifting his feet nervously. Smiling unsurely. And he fell more in love, his heartbeat accelerating.

"I…I don't mind. If we're going to be…lovers," Sept said, almost whispering.

Arkael's smile was more sure this time, and he took out the books he'd bought.

As he read the title, Sept blushed, and was glad that he was not the only one that was blushing. "We don't need a guide, do we?" he asked, eyes pleading.

"I…I want everything to be…painless, for both of us. I want our first time together to be special," Arkael said. "I've waited so long for you….I don't want to hurt you."

Sept took the book, and sat on the sofa. Arkael sat next to him. And they opened the first book.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Uh….I _did_ keep my rating of Teen with this chapter, right? Hope you don't mind that I'm prolonging the torture by not….(insert cough-cough here)….well, Arkael and Sept will…do that….soon. Oh, and remember to review!

(I'm visiting relatives for a month and half soon, so I will be on hiatus in two weeks. So….sorry! I'll come back with seven chapters for all of you …hopefully…and upload them, one per day, when I come back.)


	15. Chapter 15

Uh

Uh….Shanikwaxx? Was that number of reviews necessary? (haha)…Oh well, I won't complain... Oh, and Sept is…hmm….around 25 years old, I think, give or take a year. I love all of my reviewers…and those that like my story, even with its flaws. Oh…ambeauty, what is the other Carpathian slash fanfiction? I couldn't find any…it was so frustrating that I wrote one myself…. Anyway, here's the next chapter! Sorry for the wait!

(That repeating first line you see is not intentional….a glitch, maybe….)

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael set the book down on the table gently, as if was an animal with claws, marking their page with a bookmark. A faint blush colored his cheeks, and he was glad that his lifemate showed…such a shade of pink…in his face as well.

"S-so," his lifemate started, his voice sounding slightly strangled. He cleared his throat, and tried again. "So…what do we…I mean, should we…talk about…" He gestured vaguely at the book, eyes not meeting Arkael's.

_That book is…_, he heard his lifemate's mind say to his. _It's…how do I say this…?_

Arkael's mind reached for Sept's, showed him that he understood his feelings, before withdrawing.

He thought, as they sat in silence. That book was….informative, in a blunt kind of way. He then thought about what he'd learned from the book- in all his centuries, he'd never learned _that_ much- and looked at Sept's fidgeting hands. At how uncomfortable his lifemate looked.

"Then…after reading that, do you still want me…in that way?" Arkael whispered. He felt desperation claw at him. He'd wanted both of them to know what they were doing, if they became lovers….and now…he didn't know if Sept still felt that way. He couldn't, surely, after reading about what came with a relationship between two men. The loving itself would be painful…and dangerous. _But it is normal, for lifemates to love that way,_ his heart argued to his mind. _You shouldn't hesitate…_

_I don't need to make love to him, if it will cause him pain,_ he thought then. _All I need is for him to be near me…_ He controlled the conflicting feelings in his heart. Yearning. Fear. Desperation most of all.

And as Sept looked into his eyes to reply to his question, he knew that those feelings were shown in his eyes.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept opened his mouth, but then closed it as he saw Arkael's eyes. They were a shade of gray he'd never seen before in his eyes- a shade that reminded him of smoke and ashes. "I.."

"Don't leave me," Arkael said, and Sept heard the desperation, saw it in those eyes. "We don't need this, if the loving has that much pain, or if this is unpleasant to you….just stay with me…"

His voice was still that whisper, and Sept felt his heart turn.

"Why would I leave you?" he asked, reaching for Arkael. His arms wrapped around Arkael's larger body. "Think about it. I would never leave because of a book." He sent showed him his love through mental contact, and Arkael relaxed, resting on Sept's shoulder.

Arkael then felt shame, that he'd doubted his lifemate, doubted the power of their bond. Doubted…his lifemate's love.

"I thought you were the one that was supposed to be strong in this relationship," Sept said with a laugh. "After all, if we did end up in bed…you would be…" He licked his lips, which felt dry. "As the book would say it…" _On top._

Arkael heard the end of Sept's sentence, whispered mentally, and straightened slowly. His eyes looked into his lifemate's. "Truly? You do not mind…" He hesitated. "The pain? Or…giving up power that way?"

"Who said that I was giving up power?" Sept asked, teasingly. "This relationship will be an equal one, right?" He looked at Arkael, eyes serious. "I'm not about to be a woman…and I won't stand behind you to be protected."

"If you became Carpathian…you would probably be stronger than I in…attacking," he said.

"Became Carpathian?" Sept asked, confused. Arkael thought of how to explain it.

"You have..power. Psychic power. Those like you with such gifts can be…converted into a Carpathian." He paused. "This… The conversion. It involves the sharing of blood…so if I were to turn you, I would take your blood, and give you my blood afterwards….and do this three times."

"You said before that lifemates die together, right?" Sept asked. Arkael nodded. "So…why haven't you turned me?"

"I didn't want to talk about it and frighten you….and I thought that you would prefer a normal life…,"Arkael said. He began to feel the edge of panic again. "Carpathians, for all our power…we have so many disadvantages. I don't need to turn you, just.."

"Stay, right? You only want me to stay with you…." Sept murmured this, smiling slightly. "But…you will still die when I die. And how about when I'm old and wrinkled? You'll still look young- that's unfair." His voice held that hint of teasing that Arkael had begun to love, his voice soft, almost gentle.

"I can age with you," Arkael replied.

"But…" Sept started to say, feeling uncertain. It was all too much to take in. He was going to spend the rest of his life with Arkael. _I should be freaking out or something, _he thought. Yet…the idea of actually spending every day of his life with Arkael didn't repel him the way it should've. It didn't. And that confused him. "We can…figure this all out later, right?" Arkael nodded, knowing that his lifemate needed time. Time that he could give.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael thought of his family, as he went back to his underground room. Sept had almost forced him to go, to rest underground. His heart pumped a little faster due to his fear. _What if he is attacked after dawn, and I cannot go to him?_ He worried even more, instantly going through thousands of possible scenarios. _I should not worry…I put shields on him, and our link is strong…_

He sat on the bed, thinking of his lifemate. He desired his lifemate- but he was so afraid. The beast that he controlled- would it not call for him to make the loving painful? He tugged at his own hair, groaning, as his mind called up an image of Sept's hazed eyes, after their kisses.

_Claim him, claim him, claim him, _the beast growled. Oh, how he wanted to say those words to bind Sept to him…but he wouldn't. Not until they had a more stable relationship. Still….

He had wanted to stay with Sept, to kiss him and love him. He would've, but for Sept noticing that he weakened when he did not sleep in the earth…and that Sept was not ready. _After we finish the books, _he told his beast. _Soon, soon…_

He checked that his shields around Sept were secure before stopping his heartbeat and breathing.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept fidgeted, thinking. Unable to fall asleep.

_What's with a little pain, if you love him? _his heart seemed to tell him. _You like him, right? He likes you too- just… _He blushed as his mind joined the conversation, providing some…_interesting_….thoughts. He got up and went to the living room, deciding to check his email, since he couldn't sleep.

But then, he looked at the book on his table, and opened to the page that was bookmarked.

_Might as well read on, if I can't sleep,_ he thought.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria looked at Sept, and smiled. There were dark bags under his eyes, and his hair was messier than usual. She decided to tease him.

"So, did _someone _keep you awake last night?" she asked. She bit into the bagel she held in one hand as she read over some of the bills and suchlike that were sent to the company. Sept typed slowly, rubbing his eyes now and then, with a cup of coffee next to him. Now and then, he took a long drink from the cup. Aria waited for him to reply.

"Hmm?" he said, blinking at her. As his sleep-deprived mind absorbed the full meaning of her question, he blushed, coughed. "Uh…"

"Weeell, I've hit bull's eye, didn't I?" she asked, laughing. He blushed further.

"Well…we…haven't…you know," he said, uncomfortably. "He isn't the reason for…me not sleeping." Aria looked at him, disbelieving.

"You haven't…oh, I don't believe this. I thought you guys were moving fast," she said, laughing even more. Shaking her head, she took a sip of her coffee. "Is it because of you, or him? I thought you were in love…the way he was looks at you…" She took a bite of her bagel before continuing. "Oh well, I guess he loves you that much….let me guess. He's scared of hurting you?"

Sept looked at her, nodded slowly. "The pain…and everything. I'm not sure about it all," he admitted. "I love him, but…I need time." He bit into his own bagel. "He doesn't mind taking everything slowly…"

"So he's the patient type?" Aria asked. "Wait…does he have experience in homosexual relationships?"

"Well…no," Sept replied. There was a prolonged silence, as Aria stared at Sept.

"Oh, this is bad," she muttered. "Please tell me that you've done some research…"

"About that….Arkael bought some books….," Sept said, and told Aria about the book he read the night before.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Brother, _Arkael heard in his mind as he flew to Sept. Arkael landed on a branch as he reached for his younger brother's mind, curious as to where Reid was. The last he checked, his two younger brothers were in India, hunting vampires at the previous Prince's request. He felt affection spring in his heart, and worry- he'd not heard from either of them for five centuries.

_Reid, _he greeted his brother, an ocean away. Reid gave a somber mental nod.

_It is unfortunate, but Yael has turned, _Reid thought to him. _As we returned to our homeland…the hunting became too much for him. I believe that you must come back, greet the Prince…and help me destroy him. _Arkael hesitated before answering, feeling shocked. Too shocked by the news for grief. Not yet.

_I am but a craftsman…I will not be able to help much, _Arkael thought back. _And it may be best if one not related to him was the one to deal the final blow. _His mind was paralyzed, repeating "Yael" over and over.

_Still, you are one of the eldest,_ Reid argued. _And did you not promise Yael and I to help kill us when we turned? Yael has become part of a group of vampires- and plans to kill the Prince. You have an obligation to return._

_I…I will come, _Arkael replied. He remembered, suddenly, the image of Yael when he was born, a century and a half younger than Arkael. He loved the child. Memories assaulted him, of his elder brother Brein- now dead- teaching Yael how to hunt. Of Yael holding Reid a century after his own birth. Of Brien killing their mother and father, and how Yael had fought with him against him. Of his innocent smile, as Arkael taught him how to carve a wooden bird.

He flew quickly to his lifemates' apartment, and as he entered and changed into his human form, tears ran down his cheeks. So many memories, so much grief. He felt as if his heart was being cut, over and over, by those memories. He fell to the ground.

Sept stepped close to him, bent and wrapped him in his arms. "What's wrong?" he asked, wiping away Arkael's tears with his sleeve. Supporting him.

"Yael…my brother," Arkael managed to choke out, his gray eyes looking more vulnerable than any time before. "Yael…"

Sept comforted him, sharing his memories.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So, you didn't get the scene you wanted. Don't worry, I'll write it before I leave for my trip…hopefully. If I don't…you'd have to wait a month and a half. Awwh, don't you feel sorry for Arkael? He has to fight his own brother….again. So…what did you think? Please review!


	16. Chapter 16

If I didn't procrastinate so much and concentrated on my writing

If I didn't procrastinate so much and concentrated on my writing….(sigh)…I would've posted this chapter earlier. One more chapter for you all…Anyway, thanks A LOT to my wonderful reviewers!! You give me…support, in writing my first fanfiction. This will probably be the last chapter I post for a loooong time…so be patient for a month and a half…since I have no idea if I can go online while I take my trip…..So here.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept held him, just held him. He felt the pain that was tearing at Arkael's heart, felt that same pain inside himself. He didn't know Yael, but through their link, he saw Arkael's memories. He could feel Arkael's sorrow, his love for his brother. And he wept with his lifemate, pulling that taller body closer to him.

They sat on the ground that way for a while, before Arkael raised his head, his grief-stricken eyes cutting into Sept's heart.

"I am sorry," Arkael whispered. "You feel my pain…."

"It's fine," Sept said. Reaching for his lifemate's hands, he looked deeply into those gray eyes. He reached for their mental bond, letting Arkael feel all of his love. Letting him know that he was not alone in his grieving.

"Yael…he has turned. He is a vampire now," Arkael said. "I….I have to destroy him…"

"You don't have to, do you?" Sept asked, carefully. Gently. "You are in so much pain...and he is your brother."

"I promised," Arkael said. "All of us, my brothers and I, promised to kill each other if we were to turn."

Arkael looked so broken. The tears were gone, but now… Sept pressed his lips against Arkael's, gently. Comforting.

Arkael did not move away, but opened to the kiss, taking the comfort that was offered to him. Sept smiled in their kiss. _Let me comfort you, love you,_ he thought to Arkael. Arkael did not refuse Sept.

They rose, and walked to Sept's bedroom.

_He needs this…and I'm more than willing, _Sept thought to himself. _I love him…and I want to take some of his grief from him, at least._

"You do not need to do this," Arkael told him, softly. His expression was that of a caged animal, and Sept knew that this was his only chance to turn back. He stepped forward, kissing Arkael again, pulling his long hair from it's tie and threading his fingers through it. Arkael deepened the kiss, hands resting on his lifemate's waist.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He was speechless by his lifemate's selflessness, in offering physical comfort. He wanted warmth, and the beast rose slightly, wanting physical loving. Wanting to forget for a moment of Yael. Wanting to lose himself, his grief, in Sept.

It was too late to turn back- he wanted Sept too badly, now.

Sept kissed him, and he felt his grief fade. He felt fire in his bloodstream, starting to melt the coldness his thoughts and grief had brought. He knew that Sept felt fear, and that his lifemate had tried to hide it from him. He caressed one side of that beloved face, and met those determined green eyes with his own as he kissed him again.

He started unbuttoning his lifemate's shirt, and saw uncertainty flash in Sept's eyes. "Don't stop," Sept said as his motions slowed. He continued, pulling off the shirt slowly. Sept placed his hands on Arkael's hips, slowly tugging at the shirt.

With a thought, Arkael vanished his shirt. Sept gasped, but did not step away. He looked at Arkael, and blushed. Swallowing difficultly, he leaned into Arkael.

Arkael inhaled sharply. They were skin to skin. He fought to control himself as he wrapped his arms around Sept, kissing him less gently than before. Faster. He was desperate now, the beast so close. Grief still there.

He tugged at Sept's hand, and they walked to the bed.

They were a tangle of limbs and motion, showing each other their love. They joined, then, Arkael trying to make it less painful for his lifemate.

Suddenly, hunger rose in him. He bit into Sept's neck, and his lifemate gasped, but let him feed as they reached their peaks together.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Oww," Sept groaned a while afterwards, when he'd caught his breath. He felt sore…but what they did was…. He blushed.

"I can try to make it less painful," Arkael said, blushing as well.

"How?" Sept said, wincing as he got up. His skin heated with Arkael's gaze…and Arkael smiled.

"Carpathian saliva contains a healing agent," he said, moving closer.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael held Sept as he slept, taking comfort in his lifemate's warmth. _Mine, mine, mine, _his beast thought.

Arkael still felt the edge of grief, but that pain was dulled by Sept. He felt….loved. Untroubled. Sept was a precious gift from fate, and Arkael felt the urge to protect Sept from everything dangerous- to lock his lifemate away from the world. But he knew better, as he stroked Sept's hair.

_Many of the other Carpathians did not see that controlling their lifemates would lead to unhappiness, _he thought. _They thought safety was most important, and disregarded their lifemate's rights. I have to respect Sept…and protecting him, controlling him…that does not show my trust. And what is a lifemate bond without trust and respect?_

He thought long, and soon his thoughts shifted back to his brother.

_Oh, Yael, why did you turn? _he thought. _You should've fought harder, for your future lifemate…and now she…or he…will live alone. _He remembered the isolation he felt before he felt the lifemate bond between Sept and himself, and inwardly shuddered. He never wanted to go back to that….that loneliness, that bleak existence.

Then he realized that Sept was awake.

"G'morning," Sept yawned, his eyes gritty. He ran a hand through his hair, and gave an uncertain smile. "I must look horrible…"

Arkael shook his head, kissed him lightly. Sept's eyes heated.

"You would never look less than perfect to me, my love," Arkael said to him as he withdrew, his face close to his lifemate's.

Sept laughed. Arkael raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"You know how cliché that sounds?" Sept asked. Arkael shrugged.

"It may be…cliché, but nevertheless, it is true," Arkael replied, smiling.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You were up late last night," Aria said. A statement, not a question- her eyes were calculating as she looked Sept over, up and down. He smiled sheepishly.

"Good Morning…Aria," Sept greeted her.

"I _know_ you two did it this time….right?" Aria asked, leaning back in her seat. At Sept's hesitation, she smiled. "Was he any good?"

Sept blushed, coughed. "Well…."

"Did you like it?" Aria asked. If Arkael had hurt her best friend, she was going to give him the same amount of pain….multiplied several times…

"I…if was…," Sept started, then sighed. "It was…great. I can't describe it." At the wistful expression on his face, Aria relaxed.

"We have our yearly vacation soon," she reminded him as she glanced at the calendar. He looked at it, surprised.

"Really? I didn't realize," he said, thoughtful. "We always go to the same couple of places…do you want to go to Romania this time?"

"Hmm? Romania? Anywhere specifically?" she asked, surprised at Sept's suggestion.

"I'm thinking the Carpathian mountains," Sept answered, a devilish twinkle in his eyes. "I heard that it's a beautiful place..." He gave Aria his best smile.

"Fine, fine," Aria said. She paused before asking a question. "Is Arkael coming along too?"

"Yes," Sept said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You're coming with me?" Arkael asked, shocked. Sept looked determined, his green eyes looking straight into Arkael's.

"I'm not about to let you go alone and cut your own heart into pieces," he said. "And aren't we partners? That means that we're in everything together."

"I…it's not that," Arkael said, smiling. "I was going to ask you if you wanted to go with me…I didn't expect you to offer to go." Sept relaxed.

"Aria's coming too," he added, and Arkael froze.

He sighed. "Does that mean all of us have to travel by airplane?" he asked. He sent Sept an image of him as an owl.

"Well…I could tell Aria that you're boarding an earlier flight," Sept suggested. Arkael sighed again, in relief.

"Airplanes….I do not trust them," Arkael said. "What kind of contraption flies in that air with that weight? It is unnatural." He shuddered.

"Poor Arkael, afraid of airplanes," Sept teased. Arkael smiled.

Arkael helped Sept pack.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He felt Arkael in his mind, knew that he wasn't really abandoned by his lifemate. But it didn't stop that lonely feeling, as if a piece of his heart was missing.

He stepped onto the plane with Aria. They found their seats easily, and sat down. Sept took out his snacks- his "hoard", as Aria described it- and his books. It would be a long trip. He visualized Arkael in his mind, and couldn't wait until he saw him again. He looked out the airplane window and sighed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael reached Romania only a few hours before Sept, and waited in the airport for Sept's flight to arrive. He sat patiently on one of the benches, and diverted the attention of others from him with his mind. He missed Sept, even though he knew that it had only been two days- at most- since he'd last seen his lifemate.

He noticed a familiar presence, and turned his head to his side, standing up.

_Brother, _he greeted the man walking towards him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept stretched his legs and arms as the airplane landed, and woke Aria with a gentle shake.

"We've arrived," he said, and she yawned, rubbing her eyes.

"Hmm," she replied, still sleepy. She shook her head to clear it, and looked out the plane window. "Is Arkael at the airport waiting for us?"

"Uh…yeah," he replied, after reaching across his lifemate link.

They reached the main area of the airport, and began looking around for Arkael.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"So, you have found your lifemate, brother?" the man asked him.

"Yes," Arkael replied, smiling. "I hope you find your's soon as well, Reid." Reid nodded.

Arkael realized that Sept was close by, and turned his head, meeting those familiar green eyes. He waved, and his brother looked shocked by the human action.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Good to see you two again," Sept heard Arkael say. Arkael looked deeply into his eyes, and he blushed.

Arkael hugged him, planting a kiss on his forehead. _I would kiss you properly, but I am afraid that my brother will overreact, _he thought to his lifemate. He glanced at his brother. Suprisingly, he was not looking at Arkael and Sept….but at Aria. His eyes widened.

"L-lifemate," he said. Sept looked at Aria- and she looked at Reid as if she was unable to look away, mesmerized.

Arkael and Sept exchanged a long look. _Oh, this is…bad, isn't it? _Sept thought. Arkael gave a mental groan.

_This means…that we will need to tell Aria of Carpathians, sooner or later, _Arkael thought through their bond, observing with his lifemate how the two stared at each other.

_What is her name? _Reid asked his brother, after several minutes.

_Aria, _Sept answered immediately, hearing the question through his lifemate link with Arkael. Reid looked at him with surprise.

_This human is psychic? _he asked his brother.

_His name is Sept, _Arkael replied, slightly annoyed that his brother had addressed his lifemate as "this human". _And yes, my lifemate is psychic. _They waited for Reid to react.

His eyes widened, and he gave them a look of shock.

_You _are _female, yes? _Reid asked Sept directly. Sept raised one of his eyebrows- it was obvious that he was male, with his body type and the light stubble on his chin…. _Is he blind?_ he asked himself.

_I am sorry to disappoint, but…,_ Sept began.

_My lifemate is _male_, _Arkael continued smoothly, his mental voice holding a challenging tone.

_Impossible, he must be trick-_

_Let us continue this discussion at a later time, brother, _Arkael thought. _I am sure that you have enough to take care of, with your lifemate courting and all._

Reid looked at a confused Aria, who had been watching their facial expression change- and had not heard their mental conversation.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"This is Reid, my brother," Arkael introduced to Aria.

He looked at her again, with those intense blue eyes, and she felt her breath catch. She mentally kicked herself for her nervousness- she was a grown woman, not a star-eyed school girl! _I have to admit that he is a good-looking man, though,_ she thought. _Even though he looks like one of those arrogant types- full of themselves and good for nothing but their looks._

"Nice to meet you, I'm Aria," she said politely, extending a hand. He shook it, and she could see a smile, laced with certainty, flash across his face.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

They drove to the mountains. Reid and Arkael did not need to travel by car, but they stayed. Arkael, for Sept. And Reid, for Aria.

_I should've asked to sit next to Aria, _Sept thought with regret. Aria was driving, with Reid- sitting in the front next to her- providing instructions. Arkael and Sept sat in the back. He was getting annoyed at Reid, felt the edge of anger. _If he keeps doing that, I'd beat him up, even if he's Arkael's brother, _he thought. He felt violent energy stir inside him, controlled by the fact that Arkael's hand was on his, soothing him.

_You have good reason to be annoyed…even _I _feel like dragging my brother through the dust, this once, _Arkael thought, with a mental sound of frustration. _He's pushing his attraction into her, instead of patiently courting her and making her comfortable. He's a step away from forcing her…and he probably will claim her without her consent, if we were not here. And what is worse is that she is concentrating on driving- on our safety- and he disregards that._ He was going to talk to his brother when…

Sept could not endure it any longer- Aria was showing signs of strain. He strengthened his mental shield around Aria, blocking most of the feelings and thoughts coming from Reid to her. As Reid tried to destroy the shielding, noticing Sept's power around them, Arkael poured his power into the shields as well.

Aria's tense look relaxed.

"We have to turn here, right?" she asked Arkael, ignoring Reid.

"Y…," Reid started to answer, pushing another wave of desire into Aria, but Sept cut him off with Arkael's help.

"Yes, turn here and go the same way for a mile or so," Arkael said, smiling slightly.

_Brother. You have no right. _Reid's eyes flickered red for a moment before returning to blue. _She is mine._

_She is my friend, and has not decided if you would be a good friend or not, so you can forget about her accepting being your lifemate for a long time, _Sept thought to him with Arkael's help. _If you keep treating her with disrespect, invading her privacy, I _will _make sure that you feel pain. A lot of pain._

_Who are you, to threaten me? _Reid asked as Aria drove slowly, looking at the road carefully.

_I am Aria's friend, _Sept replied.

Reid gave a mental shrug, arrogant. _Just a friend. I am her _lifemate. _You have no right to tell me what to do when it concerns my lifemate!_

_SHE IS NOT YOUR PROPERTY! _Sept shouted, mentally, into Reid's mind. _She has her own thoughts, feelings- she _chooses _whether to accept you or not. You do not show respect for her when you force her._

_Choose? _Reid laughed, mentally. _Fate has already decided that she will be my lifemate. What else is there to say? She is mine._

Sept seethed with anger, and no longer bothered to hide it. He showed Reid his anger, and how serious he was when he said that he would make Reid feel pain.

Reid's arrogant smile did not disappear, though he stopped pushing against the shields Arkael and Sept had made.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria stopped the car, weary. She felt the atmosphere in the car, silent and angry. As she glanced back, she saw Sept breathing deeply, with an angry expression on his face. She turned her head a little to the left, and she saw a frown on Arkael's. She looked next to her.

Reid still had that arrogant smile plastered on his face.

She decided, then and there, that he was a bastard. Just like all those men she dated before, that dumped her, or cheated on her, or didn't try to understand her. _I might be attracted, but I'll stay away. _She'd suffered enough broken hearts before, and she knew that if she gave Reid a chance, he'd break her heart again. _Give them an inch and they take a mile, _she thought grimly.

She offered a smile in return. A fake one.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

So….I hope this is enough of this story to last you for a while. I'll update in a month and a half, don't worry….but reviews are still welcome…so…..

REVIEW!!


	17. Chapter 17

Okay…I revised some stuff in the previous chapters- so let me know if any of you find any more…heheh

Well….sorry for taking so long in updating! My computer died for a while, and then I got lazy…..I hope you forgive me….D

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You two don't mind living in my house during your trip, do you?" Arkael asked. Sept shook his head, amazed at the large, and beautiful, stone house Arkael had told Aria to stop next to.

"It doesn't feel right for me to live off you when I'm not giving anything back," Aria said. "Anyway…you and Sept probably want to be…alone." She smiled as Sept blushed. Arkael laughed, while Reid looked at her, interest sparkling in his blue eyes. She looked away from him.

Arkael glanced at his brother, and then back at Aria. "You should stay…after all, as Sept's friend, you are mine as well. Anyway, what is mine is his, and I am sure that he wants you to stay," he said. He looked at his lifemate tenderly.

"There's an inn nearby though….," Aria replied, her resolve already weakening.

Sept shook his head. "Stay, 'Ria," he said. "The inn is more than an hour away from here….and it's already so late. There's danger on the roads this late at night."

"Fine, I'll stay," Aria said. "Thank you, Arkael."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_I'll sleep in the room next to 'Ria,_ Sept thought to his lifemate. _I don't trust your brother._

_To be truthful, love, neither do I, _Arkael said, keeping a close eye on Aria. Carpathian males would do anything to bind their lifemates to them- and he knew his brother too well. Reid was surely desperate, after so many centuries of darkness….and after the return of color, he wouldn't be above the action of kidnapping his lifemate and forcing her to remain by his side using the ritual words.

Sept saw all the thoughts running in Arkael's mind as they walked into the house. His muscles tensed, as he kept a close eye on Reid.

_Reid, you should go to your own dwelling, _Arkael thought to his brother, ready to fight if it was necessary.

_You cannot command it of me, _brother. _She is _my _lifemate. Mine. Even if you do not have your own lifemate, it gives you no right to keep mine under your roof. _Reid's words were filled with anger, possessiveness, and a large amount of arrogance. After hearing them through his lifemate bond, Sept felt his own anger flare in respose. His jaw clenched as he felt Arkael's anger along with his own.

_Whether you accept it or not, Sept is my lifemate, _Arkael replied coldly. Sept glared at Reid, easily imagining his hands around Reid's throat. _And my accepting Aria under my roof is my choice. Leave, brother, before I- or my lifemate- hurt you._

_There is nothing you two can do to me, _Reid boasted. _It is only because it is close to dawn that I will leave. I will be back tomorrow, brother, when I will have a whole night with my lifemate. You- and the human male you call your lifemate- cannot stop me. _

"Goodbye, Aria," he called to his lifemate, before giving a challenging look to his brother, and walking, disappearing, into the night.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept and Aria left their luggage in their rooms, and went down to the spacious living room.

"Arkael has good taste," Aria said, amazed at the paintings they saw lining the walls, as well as the furniture- all of it looked well-chosen and expensive. A large, soft couch lied close to the wall, near a dark, wooden coffee table. Cushions in earthy colors, intricate embroidery on their sides, were placed on the couch. On the opposite side was a large fireplace, above of which a tapestry was hung. There was a wide window above the couch, giving them a view of the forest, and the room itself was lit by an simple and elegant chandelier.

"The tapestry is beautiful, is it not?" Arkael asked from behind them, wrapping an arm around Sept before standing next to him. Aria looked at him in surprise.

"It's wonderful," she said, looking at it. It depicted a lake under a moonlit sky, with a tree to the side. As she looked closer, she saw a white bird on a branch, wisps of cloud, and the faint figure of a person sitting under the tree, in shadow.

"The bird is a dove, right?" Sept asked. Arkael nodded.

"One of my ancestors wove the tapestry….our family has a story that goes with it," Arkael said, eyes drifting off as if looking into the past. "Would you like to hear it?" Sept and Aria nodded.

"As the story goes, my one of my ancestors met and befriended a dove in the forest, near a lake. He would find her near the lake every time he went there, and she ate the fruits and seeds he gave her," he started. "So, there was one day that he went into the forest to find some wood, and was attacked by a…wild beast. As he laid there, under a tree, the dove flew to him and transformed into a beautiful woman." He smiled. "She healed his wounds, and, to make a long story short, they fell in love and married."

"Sounds like a fairy tale," Sept said. _That wasn't what really happened, was it?_ he asked his lifemate in his mind.

_No…but I'll tell you the real story later, _Arkael said, with mental chuckling.

"Well, you two must be hungry," Arkael said, heading to the kitchen. "I found some bread and made some soup…"

"I thought you haven't been here for a while," Sept said, curious, as they walked into the kitchen.

"I asked one of my friends to help me get the house ready and to buy the food," Arkael said, turning off the heat on the stove and pouring soup into three bowls, putting a chunk of bread into each bowl. He set them by the four-sided table on the other side of the kitchen, and set down napkins and spoons next to each bowl. "Don't worry, I'm not that bad of a cook to poison the soup…"

Sept laughed. "I don't think you've had much experience cooking, from what you've..told me," he said.

"Ahh…but I've seen enough people cook to be able to make a somewhat decent soup," Arkael replied.

Aria looked on at their conversation. She had a feeling that Sept and Arkael were going into a permanent relationship- a happy, loving partnership. She envied them, but at the same time, was happy for Sept…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Good night," Aria said as she entered her room and closed her door behind her.

Sept and Arkael stayed in the hallway.

_We should put safeguards, shields around her, _Arkael thought, concerned. _So that no one- vampire or my brother- will take her away. I've put safeguards on the house….but my brother will be able to pass them. We need a different shield for her, I think._

_How about one that will tell us if anyone is trying to hurt or move her from her room? _Sept asked. He felt it was wrong to shield her without telling her…but his worry was stronger than his guilt.

_I can do that, _Arkael thought, as he showed his lifemate his ideas.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael went into his underground chamber, feeling strangely lonely, without his lifemate. His mind reached for his lifemate, for that connection.

_Can I put safeguards around you? _he asked Sept. Sept gave a mental nod.

_I can shield myself though, since you've shown me how, _he pointed out before Arkael began weaving his shield.

_I feel less worried…if you let me do this,_ Arkael said to his lifemate. _You can put your shields around me, if you wish…_

They both wove a shield around each other, before succumbing to sleep- their minds wrapped around each other in an unbreakable embrace.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

I hope you liked it…..I promise to update in a few days! )


	18. Chapter 18

Sorry for the delay!! (I would say I had a test and a lot stuff to do….but the sad truth is….I was procrastinating…umm…haha.) I won't give up on this story, worry not! D

Please tell me if I made any mistakes…..

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept yawned as he rose from his bed, hearing his joints crack as he stretched his arms. He looked to his side, wondering why his clock wasn't there. Then he remembered he wasn't home- the walls here were dark green, not the blue of his apartment.

He was in Arkael's house….

_Everything is happening so fast, _he thought to himself as he opened the door to the bathroom. _I've known him for less than a month…and here I am, living in his house in another country. Being his…lifemate…_

He sighed as conflicting feelings made themselves known. Something tender that was probably love…fear that everything was passing by too quickly, that he was helpless to stop the future he saw. He could so easily imagine himself spending every day and night with Arkael- to be able to see Arkael smile, laugh, for the rest of his life. To be able to feel his kisses and embraces, to give himself completely over to his lifemate. To, even, decide to….convert into a Carpathian.

He abandoned his thoughts, looking out the window at the blue sky. He would talk to Arkael later, figure out how he felt...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria looked at the clock hanging on the wall after stepping out from the bathroom.

_It's three pm!_ she realized. Arkael and Sept were probably downstairs, if they weren't….well, together. It was still new to her, this relationship between the two. So confusing- her aunt was homophobic….but she didn't like her aunt much anyway. She was afraid for Sept, that she was losing his heart too fast. Oh, if she'd bring it up into their conversation, she was sure he'd blush and deny it. But he was losing his heart, nonetheless.

She was jealous, in a way. Jealous of their love, jealous that Sept loved Arkael and that Arkael loved him back. All the relationships she'd had…..they'd never worked out well.

She opened the door, walking out into the silent hallway.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Good Morning, Aria," Sept said cheerfully. From where Aria stood, she could only see half of one long, jean-covered leg, and the back of his head.

"You should be saying 'Good Afternoon'….anyway, what are you doing?" Aria asked. She moved closer, curious.

"Trying to cook breakfast," Sept said. Aria looked at the pan he was holding, and the eggs and meat he'd set aside. "You like your eggs scrambled, right?"

"I'll help," she said, stepping beside him. "Where's Arkael?"

"Ohh…..he keeps strange hours, with his job and everything," Sept said, reaching for the most believable excuse. "His skin's sensitive to the sun, too…"

"Really?" Aria asked, interested. "What job does he have? He must be rich, to have a house like this." She laughed. "At least I know he'll always pay for you, that you're in capable hands. Unlike some boyfriends that I've had…"

"You should find a man that's worth you," Sept said. Aria looked at him in surprise. He looked into her eyes, sincerity and concern shining in his. "Promise me you won't agree to marry or even date anyone before you're sure he's the one you want, k?"

"Why are you suddenly saying this?" she asked. "I've done fine myself….bad boyfriends and all." _It's not like I'll be dating anytime soon, _she thought. _Now that I think about it…..it's better being single…._

"I'm just…worried," Sept said, as he cracked the eggs into a large white bowl. Aria started to cut the meat into sizeable chunks.

"Worried about…?" Aria asked.

"About…..well….." Sept's voice drifted off. "I'll tell you soon, I promise."

Aria sighed. "Just give me a hint?"

"Well…..I'm just worried about…future boyfriends," Sept said, cautiously. "I don't want your heart broken…I want you to be happy. So, be careful."

"I will, I will," Aria replied. No broken hearts ever again…..

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael woke, when the sun was setting. He felt a thirsty, a faint burning in his throat. He needed to feed soon….

_Sept? _he called to his lifemate.

_A-Arkael? _Sept replied, in surprise. Arkael could feel his lifemate's happiness, welcome, and smiled, enveloping him with a mental embrace.

_Do you mind if I go to the village? I….need to feed, _Arkael thought to Sept.

He felt the faint stirring of jealousy and confusion, uncertainty. From his lifemate. His heart thumped, feeling a little afraid. He wouldn't feed- not if it meant causing his lifemate pain….

_I heard that, _Sept thought, amused. _I suppose….I'm just…I just feel this way when I imagine you biting into someone's neck. Some blonde, beautiful woman…_

_How about a blonde, beautiful man? _Arkael asked, teasing. He heard Sept's mental groan.

_Did you _need _to tell me that? _Sept groaned. _That's it, I'll ban blood from your diet-_

_Will you ban me from biting into your neck, then? _Arkael asked, knowing that Sept was not serious. He sent an image, the feelings he felt from biting into his lifemate's neck….the taste of his blood.

A flicker of awareness, attraction, was held between them. Arkael could feel Sept's body swallow, the beating of his heart, the vein on his neck thumping……he could taste Sept's blood. His eyes reddened, his fangs grew. Then he remembered Sept's smile, laughter, eyes. He controlled the beast, chaining him.

_Sorry, love, _Arkael thought, apologetic. His mental voice was strained, a little coarser and deeper than before.

_Drink my blood, _Sept replied, in the same strained voice. _I can stand to lose a little…_

_No, _Arkael thought. _Right now…it's too dangerous. I fear that when my hunger overtakes me….I'll….force a blood exchange, or hurt you. _Sept felt Arkael's desperation, letting go of his argument.

_Be back soon, _he called to Arkael, who turned into an owl, flying to the village.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Reid waited outside his brother's house, in the form of a raven. He perched on a branch, watching his lifemate read a book through the large window next to him. Hunger rose in him, and a fierce longing. Possessiveness, and a hint of a more tender emotion.

Aria set the book down, and began crying, reaching for a tissue. Fear and anger warred inside him for a moment before he opened the window and flew inside, changing into the form of a man. He acted on instinct, reaching one hand out to wipe away a tear. He bent down, connecting their lips.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria felt the solidity of warm lips against her's, of warm hands wiping away her tears.

She knew it had been a mistake to read the book. It reminded her too much of herself, of how she'd been willing to give it all to that man….and how he'd betrayed her. How it had happened to her over and over, how every time she got into a serious relationship, she suffered. Dave, who cheated on her with a buxom blonde. Bob, who used their relationship to try to steal from her bank account. And countless others, who broke her heart just when she was willing to risk it again….

But this kiss…it was so warm, so rough…. She sighed, then caught herself, her heart beating in fear. Something was wrong….

She broke the spell, pushed the person in front of her back. No one should be in the room- Arkael was out on business, Sept was in his room.

She looked above her, at that arrogant smile.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hmmm….left it at a cliff hanger, sorry! I'll update soon…hopefully….-coughs-


	19. Chapter 19

Sorry for being so lazy….^^….I'll try to be more punctual, I promise! –ducks from the tomatoes her inner self is throwing at her-

I left the last chapter at a cliffhanger, too….hehe…umm…

Hope you enjoy this chapter, though…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

She gasped, fear growing with every heartbeat. The man withdrew a several feet away, confusion showing in his face.

Not thinking, relying on instinct, she reached for the nearest object- her book, lying on the table. She threw it at him, aiming for his head, before she realized who it was.

By then, it was too late. The book was in the air.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

His lifemate threw the book at him- fear…_fear_, actual fear of _him_, in her eyes.

He caught it easily, still confused. _Doesn't she feel what I feel? _he asked himself. _Shouldn't she be glad to see me….willing to kiss me? _The beast growled, remembering the kiss. _She is mine…whether she likes it or not, we _are _lifemates….she cannot deny fate…. _His thoughts and emotions were shadowed by possessiveness, the lingering traces of confusion disappearing , as he looked at his lifemate, whose eyes were wide in shock.

Silence hung in the air, remaining unbroken by either of them.

He still looked at her, eyes possessive, heated. His lips curved in that arrogant smile. Still holding her book in his right hand.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept froze. Something felt out of place, strange…almost as if….

His heart stopped for a moment as his mind pieces through the pieces- what he felt, the wards he and Arkael had placed on Aria's room, and how Reid _was Aria's lifemate…_and what Reid could and would do to have her.

He rushed out the door, running down the long hallway to reach Aria's room. He didn't bother to knock, opening the door with a shaking hand.

Two heads turned to him. His eyes narrowed.

"You're not supposed to be here, Reid," he said, backing up his words with anger and a fierce protectiveness, born from the strong friendship between him and Aria.

"I am her lifemate," Reid replied, as if that was the answer to everything. His arm lowered, setting Aria's book to the side.

"It doesn't explain your disregard for privacy," Sept said, ready to reach for Arkael through their link if Reid took even one step in Aria's direction. "You scared her. A good _lifemate _would give everything time, be able to wait. A man like you- who doesn't respect her- doesn't deserve her."

"_Don't respect her?_ What do you mean by that, _human_?" Reid asked, growing unnaturally still. His blue eyes were focused on Sept, watching him like how a hunter observes his prey.

Aria watched this all, her mind struggling to comprehend what was unfolding in front of her eyes. People _could not_ just suddenly appear in rooms. Or….could they? She looked closer at Reid, at his classically handsome face. Then she looked at Sept, eyes still locked with Reid's. _It's probably some alpha-male thing I wouldn't understand, _she thought, wryly.

"Would you two explain to me what's going on, and stop looking at each other?" Aria asked, frustrated at how her mind was working itself into tangles trying to explain Reid's arrival and his conversation with Sept. _What's a lifemate, for one? _she asked herself. "I'm sure Arkael would be jealous at how long you've been looking at his brother, Sept."

Sept laughed, a short humorless sound. "I think we might want to wait for Arkael before everything's explained to you," he said. He gave Reid a warning look, moving closer to Aria.

Reid growled, but did not reach for Aria, his hands fisted by his sides- those blue eyes filled with something that struck a chord of fear in Aria. It reminded her of her dreams, strange surreal moments that felt so _real_, so detailed….. As if they were her memories. But never in her memories were there people who drank blood and had red eyes, like those in her dreams…

But Reid appeared out of thin air, and was talking about things she didn't understand. Like lifemates.

Things she didn't understand, but Sept clearly did. Her eyes narrowed on him. "You have a lot of explaining to do, Sept," she said.

Sept shrugged, smiling weakly, as he reached for his lifemate bond to tell Arkael about Reid.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael was drinking from the wrist of a tourist when he felt Sept reach for him. Quickly, he stopped drinking, healing the bite marks and sending a compulsion into the man's mind- _you wish to return to the inn. You will not remember anything- only that you were on a walk in the forest…._

The man started to walk away, as Arkael stood in the shadows of a tree.

_Arkael!_ Sept's mind voice was worried…frustrated, even.

_What is it, love? _Arkael sent back, turning into an owl and starting his flight home.

_Reid decided to pop in for a visit, _Sept thought to him, dryly. _And Aria…she knows that we're hiding something. She wants answers._

Arkael flew faster, worry and fear twining themselves around his heart.

_Wait for me, love, _he called. _I'll be there soon._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Reid, 'Ria….why don't we wait downstairs until Arkael comes here?" Sept asked, with a strained smile.

He was already envisioning the possibilities. Reid could grab Aria and make a run for it, then turn her into a Carpathian against her will and bind her to him. Arkael could come in time, and start fighting with his brother. Sept wasn't sure who would win in that scenario- he trusted in Arkael, but Reid was someone his lifemate called a hunter, after all…would that mean that Arkael would lose? There was also the possibility that Aria would think that they were crazy. After all, they were going to tell her about vampires, something you could only find in books and movies, not in real life. _That's what I thought, before Arkael._

Aria started to walk out the room, heading downstairs, sparing only a glance at Reid and a look at Sept that spoke volumes. Sept looked at Reid.

"Waiting or not, it doesn't matter," Reid said. "The outcome has already been decided…and no one, even my brother, will be able to change it." His blue eyes were, suddenly, cold. "I do not believe that you are my brother's lifemate….but I will wait to clarify this matter with him."

He walked out and down the stairs, Sept following.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael changed into his regular form as he landed in front of his door. Immediately, Sept opened it, and Arkael stepped inside, taking one look at the tension his lifemate was giving off before reaching for Sept's mind and saying, _Did anything happen?_

"No, but something _might_ happen, soon," Sept said with a sigh.

They walked to the living room, where Aria and Reid sat. Aria looked up as they entered.

"Hello, Arkael," she said with faked cheerfulness. Reid looked silently at his brother.

"So…,"Sept started. He stopped, feeling the awkward silence draining on him. "What do you want to know, Aria?" He smiled cautiously.

"Everything," she replied, with that glint in her eye that Sept recognized- that glint that appeared when she was determined to have her way. She meant it, when she said _everything_, even if she didn't know what exactly everything entailed.

Sept would have to tell her everything, anyway. Sooner or later.

"Where should we start, then?" Arkael asked. "There's…a lot to tell."

Sept and Arkael sat down.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Review, please? =D


	20. Chapter 20

**Of course, ambeauty, you're right….- there I go with the dots again! I'm afraid it's one of those habits that I can't really get rid of…I use them everywhere- I have one friend that goes "Stop using them, they're depressive" every time I do…..which is a lot. Haha. ;D**

**I'll try to fix my chapters though, thanks for your advice! (To be truthful, I really need a lot of advice…)**

**I intended for this to be out a long time ago, like, before Christmas….but I have absolutely no idea where to go with this story right now…and the characters aren't speaking to me much… I guess it's because I haven't read this story for a while. So my updates will be….uh…not regular.**

**I love all my reviewers- sorry for not writing this sooner! Now….to the next chapter!**

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Why don't we treat this as a story, first?" Arkael asked.

"A story?" Aria asked back, confused.

"Just listen for a while before saying anything, okay? There are things you'll find that you won't believe," Sept said, his green eyes pleading Aria to just follow, to listen and not question, just for now.

"Okay," Aria said, leaning back.

"So…in these mountains, there is an ancient and powerful people, the Carpathians," Arkael began. He paused, as Aria nodded for him to go on. "The Carpathians are not human- they can read minds, heal, turn into animals, do things that humans would find impossible. But there are drawbacks to the power they are born with. Carpathians need to drink blood to survive. Also, when a male Carpathian reaches his two hundredth year, he loses the ability to see color and to feel emotion. The darkness starts to weigh on him through the centuries, sometimes leading to the male turning into…a vampire. "

Arkael said the last two words hesitantly. Aria just raised one brow questioningly. "A _vampire_," she stated, unbelievingly.

"Treating as a story, Aria, remember?" Sept cut in, laughing.

"Mhm," Aria said. "Okay….a vampire. Go on."

"A male turns into a vampire when he kills while drinking blood, giving into his beast. After turning, he is…deranged, insane. He is no longer an honorable Carpathian. Instead, he kills humans and does evil, becoming the Carpathian enemy."

"Even though this is a _story_, it seems unfair that the Carpathian turns evil immediately after he kills someone….even if someone were to kill another in real life, it could be by accident. It doesn't mean that that person is evil," Aria argued.

"Carpathians are different. Killing while feeding changes us, turns us into the vampire. We have no choice," Arkael said. Sept knew instinctively that his lifemate was thinking about his brother.

"_We_?" Aria said, smiling, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

_Oops_, Sept thought to Arkael, amused.

_Oops indeed, _Arkael thought back with a sigh. They could almost see Aria putting the pieces of the story together, then hitting a dead end.

"Then, you and your brother are Carpathian?" she asked.

"Yes," Arkael replied with a smile.

"Unbelievable," she muttered, closing her eyes. When she opened them, she said, "Prove it."

_What should I do?_ Arkael asked his lifemate.

_Turn into a wolf or something, _Sept suggested.

_A good idea as any, _Arkael replied as he stood.

Aria looked at him with alarm, as Arkael started to turn into a wolf, dark fur replacing clothes and skin. He moved to Sept, who laughed and stroked his coat. Then he changed back, effortlessly.

"Oh," Aria said. Sept could tell that the shock was preventing her brain from processing the information, and just waited. Aria took one slow breath. Exhaled.

Reid looked at Aria, feeling the increase in her heartbeat. He frowned.

_Don't worry, calm, calm,_ he couldn't stop himself murmuring, in his mind.

"Nothing to worry about? My friend's lover is another species, and I have nothing to worry about?" she almost shouted, exasperated.

Sept and Arkael shared a look.

"Reid…," Arkael warned.

"I cannot stop what I feel," Reid protested. "She is mine…."

"Hmm?" Aria said, feeling the tension in the room. "What's wrong?"

"Well, it's just..," Sept began. "Whatever Reid said to you, we didn't hear it."

"Didn't hear it?" Aria asked.

"You see, he was talking with his mind…"

"Oh, god," Aria said, her head leaning against the top of the sofa. "People- no, vampires…or Carpathians?- well, this- this…" She sighed. "People turning into wolves, talking with their minds…it's all so unbelievable." She turned to Sept. "And you! Why didn't tell me before?"

"Well, I'm telling you now, right?" Sept replied, sheepishly. "I wouldn't have told you about it if it weren't for Reid." But then he caught himself, with a mental _oops_ ringing in his head.

"Reid, hmm?" Aria asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Sept could see Reid look at her possessively, his body angling itself a bit more to face her. "And not telling me?"

"I would've, if years and years passed…and I chose to become Carpathian," Sept replied. "And Reid…uh." He stopped, wondering how much to tell her. Why not just tell her all and be done with it? "He's your lifemate."

"Lifemate?" she said, half a statement and half a question.

Reid looked at Sept, scowling.

"If a male Carpathian finds his lifemate, he regains his ability to feel emotions and see color," Arkael said, smoothly taking over from Sept, who was still the target of Reid's glaring. "A lifemate is a fated lover, the perfect half of our heart." He looked at Sept with a smile. "Though Sept and I are the only male pairing I've ever heard of."

"Huh." Aria thought about it for a while.

"Wait, what?"

"Now that she knows, can I say the words?" Reid asked, eyes never leaving Aria, who looked at him in shock, confusion, and a good amount of _I don't believe this._

"Look, it's her choice whether to accept you or not," Sept said. "You'll better learn to change if you want to have any chance of winning her heart."

"It would be easier to bind her to my side and save us both pain. Winning her heart will happen, no matter what I do," Reid said, shrugging. Three sets of eyes narrowed.

"I'm afraid that you've worn out your welcome, brother," Arkael said, tone falsely sweet. "I suggest that you go back to your own home and think about how you should change before coming back here."

Reid growled, making a move for Aria, inhumanly fast.

Sept moved in front of Aria, following his instincts and throwing up mental and physical defenses. Arkael thought he saw his eyes glow, before Reid was thrown across the room.

But both Sept and Reid didn't break eye contact, locked in some mental battle for dominance. Arkael tried to weave himself in between them, but was instantly pushed back.

"What's happening?" Aria asked, watching as the seconds ticked by and Sept and Reid just stood there, unmoving.

"I don't know," Arkael said, his heart beating too fast, his throat suddenly dry.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**Sorry for the months you've waited…**

**Hope you can point out any mistakes I've made…and review!**

**And I think I might be able to get a new chapter out a little sooner than this one….maybe.**

**=D**


	21. Chapter 21

**I have absolutely no idea where to take the story…my agonizing over what to write and what the plot should be was part of why this came out so very late…**

**But not all of it, hahaha…it was mostly me procrastinating and reading too much fanfiction. Lately I've been addicted to Harry Potter fanfictions…Sirius x Remus is such a cute couple…and I've always wondered what would've happened if Harry had gone to another school or House…**

**Sorry for going on like that…**

**By now, you probably want to murder me…or something. Please spare me~ =)**

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept looked into Reid's eyes, anger making him push past Reid's mental walls, as their minds pushed against each other.

Flashes of memory and thought went through Sept, as the room suddenly went dark, and all that remained was Reid's mind, fighting against his, trying to push itself into his even as he was doing the same. Their minds were tangled now, repelling each other even as they wound closer and closer together-

_Aria- _Aria's eyes, so brown, and the feeling of belonging, of somehow being free of the suffocating darkness-

_Who does he think he is to tell me that she- _She is mine. Mine! Who is he, really? She will save me, and here is this human. Is he her lover? And now, how is he resisting me?

_How is a human so powerful? He can't be my brother's- _Arkael's lifemate? Surely it isn't possible…a male? Has he fooled Arkael into believing that he is his lifemate? This could be some plot of Yael's…

_Yael._

At that word, Sept felt the grief Reid had felt, saw-

_A pair of larger hands dropped something on top of his palms, the feeling of something cold and solid in his looked up at Yael, who smiled._

_"Guess what it is," his older brother- older than him by 150 years, so it wasn't that much of a difference…not like Arkael, who was 250 years older than he was. Now, was _old.

_But he couldn't guess what the object in his hand was. Yael sensed his confusion and frustration, smiling wider. _

It was years before Yael lost his ability to see color, Reid thought. He knew it was coming, but he spent those few years with Reid, since their parents were too busy-

_"I suppose I won't prolong your suffering any longer, Reid," Yael said, eyes twinkling as he uncovered his hands from his brother's._

His parents were not responsible people, free spirits that preferred to travel and leave their children behind. But Yael was always there for him, in those early years.

Arkael was always away, already an emotionless adult- no fun at all. But Yael was always patient with him, laughing with him.

Yael was the one that taught him how to hunt, how to read and write and use his powers. Yael was with him when he first shifted into a wolf, his eyes sparkling with pride. Yael was the one that protected him when that vampire-

_It was a wooden wolf painted in blues, silvers, and greens, with rubies for eyes._

_"Well, Arkael was the one that carved that, but I did the painting and set the rubies, so…Well, if you don't like it I could give you that book in my library you've been eyeing…"_

_Reid jumped up, wrapping his arms around Yael's neck. Laughing, Yael bent down to wrap his own arms around Reid._

_"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Reid said, excited._

_There was a short pause, and Reid coughed before he said, "Can I have that book too?"_

_Yael laughed harder._

_"Yes, you can."_

Guilt. He was guilty for making Arkael the one to kill Yael. Guilty that he couldn't do that to his brother himself, be the one to preserve his brother's memory.

And guilty, most of all, that he'd found his lifemate while Yael was taken by the darkness.

Both Sept and Reid drowned in Reid's memories…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arkael stepped closer to his lifemate, wrapping a hand around his love's.

"Will you watch over my body while I try to…fix this?" he asked Aria. She nodded.

He reached with his mind again, but this time, he reached through his lifemate bond, slowly threading his mind into his lifemate's shields until he felt Reid.

….Arkael was always away….

Reid was thinking about him? He listened carefully, unable to help himself.

At that moment, he was pulled into the vortex.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Reid saw Sept's memories, even as he was reliving his own, collapsing into a swirling vortex of colors- a flash of orange there, a flash of blue there, and a sense of gray all around him.

_What's with a little pain, if you love him? …._

_Did you carve this? ...._

_"Lifemates," Arkael said."Not boyfriends only, or lovers yet, but still, lifemates…"_

_He did not push, but waited for Sept to lean forward, kissing him uncertainly._

I love him, even if things are going faster than they're supposed to, Sept thought.

Then Arkael's thoughts and memories entered into Reid's mind, twining with Sept's until Reid couldn't see where one started and the other began.

_"Not only your…desire," Arkael said, a teasing note entering his voice. It surprised him, that he could tease. So many centuries without that…. He cannot be replaced, he is my lifemate….I need to court him properly, he thought, worried. I must be careful…I need to learn more to love him well. There had never been another time that he'd wished he were younger, a younger Carpathian that would know more of such modern things__…. __**(From Chapter 14)**_

Ah, I do not deserve him, Arkael thought, remembering-

_….__he heard the man next to the woman laugh, a clear, beautiful sound. He looked at him, at the young face, the dark green eyes, the soft black hair…..and knew he was lost, his heart painful, the beast rising painfully. Him, his heart seemed to tell him__…. __**(From Chapter 2)**_

__Small moments passed through Reid's mind, the love between his brother and Sept somehow going through him as he watched those memories, those thoughts…

_So I was wrong,_ the thinking part of his mind whispered. _He is Arkael's lifemate._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria sat on the sofa, watching the three men. The three _silent and unmoving_ men.

Her foot tapped on the floor, as various scenarios went through her mind.

One- Sept and Reid could be mind-fighting or whatever they called it, and Sept could lose and then- No. She abandoned that train of thought.

Two- They could be trapped in some god-knows-where part of one of their minds, or tangled together, and Sept would never be able to-

No, it seemed that thinking was doing her no good.

She sighed. Glanced at her watch. _11:07_, she read.

_Oh, if they aren't all right in an hour, I'm going to do something, _she thought. _Get help, shake them awake, _something.

She hated this feeling of uselessness. All she could do was watch as her friend stood there, in some kind of invisible danger. Some kind of danger she couldn't face with him.

She could only wait. It was maddening, frustrating-

But she sat there, tapping her foot on the floor, tense and waiting.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_"What's the future like, I wonder?" a younger Sept asked Aria._

Aria? Reid concentrated more on the memory.

_"Huh. Who knows?" Aria asked back, lying against the tree, Sept sitting cross-legged next to her._

_"The future's scary, isn't it?" Sept murmured, leaning back into the grass._

_"I don't know…but it's exciting too, don't you think?" Aria replied. "So many possibilities-"_

_"Huh. Imagine, you could be swept up off your feet by some dashing prince! Wasn't it your dream?" Sept said, teasingly. "You even dressed as Cinderella for Halloween!"_

_"That was years ago," Aria said. "And it was Snow White, not Cinderella." She thought for a moment before smiling slyly. "And didn't you dress up as my prince that year?"_

_"Well…"_

_"You're going to sweep me off my feet, dashing prince?" she said, in an unnaturally sweet tone. "Oh, darling, let us ride off into the sunset together-"_

_Sept looked, horrified, at her._

_"Oh, I was just kidding, no need to react like that," she grumbled._

_They both laughed._

Reid wondered if she did have feelings for the human man. He was his brother's lifemate…there was no way that he would return her feelings-

Or maybe they were just friends. Just friends…right?

-We're just friends, you don't need to worry.-

A male voice called from his side, strangely familiar. As the echoes from that sentence faded, he realized that it was Sept…and that his brother's lifemate was….amused? He saw all the memories fade into the background as Sept appeared, green wisps hanging off him.

-Sept?- Another voice called, deeper.As he reached where they were, they saw Arkael, covered in gray and blue wisps hanging off his form. When he walked up beside Sept, their auras caressed each other…like flame, dancing around each other, Reid thought.

-Now…how do we get out of here?- Sept asked, looking around.

All they saw was a gray landscape with streaks and threads of color here and there, memories reflecting and being absorbed into them. Strange and surreal…but it was the same everywhere they turned.

There was no exit.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**So…How was it? I hope it was worth the wait…?**

**(Even though it was really short)**

**Please review, if you have the time? =D**


	22. Chapter 22

**I guess that I'll be updating a lot less than I should…I have quite a bit of school work at the moment…and on the side, there are all these wonderful fanfictions to read…**

**Or maybe it's just me being confused about how to continue this, again.**

**Hmm…**

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Aria looked at her watch for what was probably the thousandth time.

_Ten more minutes. I'll give them ten more minutes._

Even as she told herself that, she bit her lip and looked at the three unmoving bodies.

_Nine minutes and fourty seconds…._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

-So…should we just pick a direction and start walking, or something?- Sept asked, as a silver-colored memory bobbed up and floated above them. As it passed, they saw glimpses of Arkael's face, and the faint sounds of chanting.

-We need to find the road back to our consciousness…I think. We're not out of our bodies, that's all I know…but how our minds can connect like this, I know not.- Arkael said this in a curious tone.

-Shouldn't you be more worried?- Sept asked. –After all, we could be stuck here forever, you know.-

-Being here with you forever isn't that bad of a fate.-

Arkael smiled. As Sept smiled back, Reid coughed discreetly.

They turned to him.

_Oh, I've forgotten how some lifemate couples could be,_ he thought, grumbling in his head- and forgetting for a moment the hypocrisy of his thought.

-Since our minds are connected together, shouldn't we first concentrate on separating them?- Reid suggested, looking around them more closely.

-Sounds like a good idea, - Sept said. –How do we do it, though?-

-Maybe by distancing our thoughts and memories from each other and gathering them back into us, - Arkael said, thinking out loud.

-Let's try it now, then, - Reid said, closing his eyes.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Five minutes….four minutes and eighteen seconds…._

_Four minutes and fifteen seconds._

She'd already paced the length of the room ten times, and admitted to herself that she was not the patient kind of person. Even Sept was more patient than her.

_Four minutes and ten seconds._

_Oh, to hell with it, _she thought, as she walked to the men, holding out her hands. _I've given them enough time as it is._

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sept closed his own eyes, and mentally _reached_ for those strands and blobs of memory and thought that he knew, instinctively, were his. Slowly, he felt them being wrapped around him, dissolving into his body. Then, suddenly, they were flying to him, faster and faster until he was no longer in control-

And then he felt a sensation of heaviness, as if before he had been made out of air-

And he opened his eyes.

"Aria?"

At that, his friend threw herself at him, knocking him into the ground.

"Did you know how worried I was?" she said, shaking him, tears appearing in her eyes. "I was about to go to wherever your mind had disappeared to…and you know how angry I am at you? Why do you always have to throw yourself into danger like that?"

He smiled weakly, not daring to interrupt her rant.

Arkael was the next one to 'wake'. Sept could feel it, through their connection.

"Should I be feeling worried?" Arkael asked, amused, as he gestured at their position. Aria immediately shot up, but not before Reid woke and saw them.

He growled before he could stop himself, and then looked away. Sept laughed as he pushed himself up, accepting Arkael's hand as he did so.

"So, why don't you three tell me what happened, hmm?" Aria asked, tone unconvincingly sweet, as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. It was something the men were getting used to.

The three men looked at each other. As the seconds ticked by, Sept sighed, giving up.

"Basically, our minds were stuck together," he said. "Interesting experience…but not one I want to repeat."

She looked over them.

"Well, whatever happened, you guys and Reid don't look as awkward and angry at each other anymore," she said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

This time, they sat back down on the sofas without the glares and tension running in the air.

And Aria was glad of that. She was touched that Sept would be so protective- but on the other hand, Reid looking at her the way he did… _What should I be feeling?_ She wondered.

Some of the arrogance and posturing Reid had shown earlier was gone. As she looked at him now, long legs slightly apart, hands clasped behind his head- it was almost like she was seeing a new person. There was more feeling to his eyes. His muscles were relaxed, the hard lines smoothening out from his face. The arrogance was still there, but muted somehow.

She turned her attention to Sept and Arkael, who sat side by side. Arkael had one arm draped around Sept, turning his head so that his nose was in his hair. Sept leaned against Arkael, one hand in Arkael's hair. Their eyes were connected, as if they were having a conversation-

Well, they could be, Aria realized. If all that Carpathian stuff was real and she hadn't hallucinated the past few hours, that is.

Sept and Arkael leaned back after a while, turning their heads to the rest of the room.

Aria smiled- was that a blush on Sept's face. _Yes, that was definitely a blush._

_`Ahaha, I wonder what they are talking about, hmm?_

"So, should we…uh, sleep now?" Sept asked, awkwardly. "It is pretty late…"

"That would be best," Arkael said. "The sun will rise soon."

"You can wait until tomorrow for your answers, right?" Sept asked her. She nodded.

Reid stood. "I will not argue… I will not win against you." Reid looked at Aria then. He clasped her hand in his before she could move away in surprise- and placed a light kiss on her palm. "I won't force you, but…I am sure that sooner or later, you will be mine."

And with a slightly arrogant smile, he vanished.

"Well, that was interesting," Aria mumbled. Arkael and Sept laughed- the first from hearing the increase in her heart rate, the second from seeing her blush.

"Well, give him a chance," Sept said. "But if he gets too cavemanish, feel free to whack him over the head…he needs it."

"I still need to learn about all that…lifemate Carpathian stuff," Aria said, rubbing her head. "Any chance of me waking up tomorrow and none of this being real?"

Sept smiled. He walked closer to her, draping an arm onto her shoulders. "Don't worry that much about it. Hmm…I'll walk up with you."

Aria shook her head, moving out of his half-embrace. "I can do that myself….anyway, you and Arkael probably want some _alone time, _hmm?" She gave them a cat-like grin, laughing at the way both of them smiled and blushed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

**Yeah…I really need to return to the books to regain inspiration….^^;;**

**Well, hope this chapter wasn't that bad…please review!**

**Maybe I'll put this on temporary hiatus until the next book comes out? I don't know…hmm…any suggestions?**

**=)**


End file.
